Disability Arts Online

The Signdance Collective (SDC) are an international dance, music, theatre company based at Bucks New University in South East England. David Bower and Isolte Avila blog the companies travels to festivals worldwide.

What does the success of Heart n Soul mean for the rest of us in disability arts? Jon Pratty talks to Tony Panayiotou, Director of Diversity at Arts Council England, at the Heart n Soul MBE celebration party at Deptford Albany.

Colin Hambrook wonders why disabled artists of the repute of Robert Wyatt have never joined the fray within the disability movement?

A review of Jez Colborne’s (aka J C Jamma) one-man show, On the Verge.

Colin Hambrook reviews this year's big disability celebration in Trafalgar Square

Lloyd Page reviews the latest release from a great new punk band from Lewes, Sussex

London's Disability Rights Festival, reviewed by Colin Hambrook

The third Xposure Arts Festival, which ran from 1 to 27 November 2004, is one of the largest festivals of disabled artists and performers in the UK.

Following the success of last year’s Wild Things CD, Brighton punk band Heavy Load launched the second compilation on their Get in or Get Out label on 10 December 2009 at Komedia, Brighton. Colin Hambrook reviews Volume 2, a double CD featuring artists from all over the world. All proceeds go towards the Stay Up Late campaign

The Institute of Contemporary Arts exhibits Billy Childish's first major retrospective of work in London, bringing together a cross-section of works from the artists career as a musician, artist, novelist, film maker and poet. Colin Hambrook reviews the show by this talented, infamous artist.

Colin Hambrook caught up with soul diva Lizzie Emeh in Brighton for a gig at Carousel's Blue Camel Club

"Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll" - the biopic of the life of punk legend Ian Dury opens in London on 8 January 2010. Colin Hambrook discusses the pros and cons of choosing Andy Serkis to play the lead role.

Rachel Feldberg, Artistic Director of the Ilkley Literature Festival, discusses life, love and disability with Jo Verrent, director of ADA inc.

Melissa Mostyn reviews Sophie Woolley's latest one-woman show When to Run?

Extant are the only blind theatre company in the UK. Over the past few years they have been developing new styles to create access for blind performers and audiences alike.

The Unusual Stage School; Mat Fraser gives an assessment of a new theatre project launched by Disability Arts Cymru.

A review of Jez Colborne’s (aka J C Jamma) one-man show, On the Verge.

Sara Beer reviews a performance of Kaite O’Reilly's play, on tour in Wales and Manchester

A moving play about the problem of long-term unemployment, in which four disabled friends stave off the despair of joblessness by re-enacting Amundsen's expedition to the South Pole.

Jo Verrent reviews eight disability-related shows at the Edinburgh Festival

Lindsay Carter caught Deborah William's; one-woman show oUo maan at Caedmon Hall, Gateshead

Julie McNamara tours the UK with her story of sex, religion and psychiatry

The Fingersmiths latest production incorporates spoken and projected text with theatricalised British Sign Language. Penny Pepper caught their performance at the Drill Hall, London.

Melissa Mostyn reviews Sign Dance Collective's latest show But Beautiful and raises some thought-provoking questions.

Peter Street reviews a script-in-hand performance at the Bolton Octagon March 2007

Colin Hambrook saw the new production of Lynn Manning's autobiographical play Weights in Brighton, at the beginning of its UK tour.

Robert Softley reviews Nabil Shaban's play about the holocaust

Robert Softely reviewed Graeae's touring production in March 2008.

Tanya Raabe reviews Laurence Clark sizing himself up to find out just how evil he can be

Liz Carr is taking disability comedy to new boundaries with her latest show

Maria Oshodi reports back on Extant's recent visit to the fifth international Blind in Theatre Festival held in Zagreb in October.

Crossings was originally commissioned as a theatre work in progress by DaDa (Deaf and Disability Arts) Festival, Liverpool. Peter Street reflects on Julie McNamara's gripping piece of drama which examines racist times from the past with contemporary racist attitudes.

Double Sentence presents some new departures in style for Deafinitely Theatre Company. Alan McLean saw the production at the Arena Theatre Wolverhampton on 1 October 2009.

Kate Larsen reviews this 'furious comedy', which attempts to grapple with the realities of dementia and Alzheimer’s. Really Old, Like Forty Five is playing at the Cottesloe Theatre, London until 20 April 2010.

DIY Theatre Company showcased their latest performance 'In Other Words' at Salford Arts Theatre on 24 March. New dao writer Harry Matthews went along to the performance to assess how DIY challenge stereotypes with their work.

Mark Haddon approaches disability from another angle with his stage-writing debut, Polar Bears. Kate Larsen critiques his new play - on at the Donmar Warehouse, London until 22 May 2010.

Award-winning poet Bernadette Cremin crafts work from her three collections into a series of six monologues of women who have "catwalked and crawled" out of her poetry. Colin Hambrook caught the opening performance in an inaccessible dive in the Brighton Fringe.

Artist Alicia Grace reviews the second Alternative Dramaturgies symposium.

DAO asks Sarah Kennedy about the work of Mind the Gap and a forthcoming conference it is organising around opportunities for learning disabled actors

Colin Hambrook, editor of dao, attended the Art of Difference Disability and Deaf Arts Festival at the Gasworks, Melbourne from 10-21 March 2009. He also went along to the Momentum09 one-day conference in Auckland on 27 February 2009. Here he compares the differences between the development of Disability Arts in the UK in comparison to developments in the Antipodes.

The Signdance Collective (SDC) are an international dance, music, theatre company based at Bucks New University in South East England. David Bower and Isolte Avila blog the companies travels to festivals worldwide.

Sign Dance Collective are fast developing a Europe-wide reputation for their imaginative new style of sign dance theatre. Colin reviews their show reel.

Melissa Mostyn reviews Sign Dance Collective's latest show But Beautiful and raises some thought-provoking questions.

London's Disability Rights Festival, reviewed by Colin Hambrook

Laurence Clark tours his latest stand-up show - on the condition that Jim Davidson isn't let in the theatre - until December 2005.

Groundbreaking comedy performer, Maysoon Zayid, takes a break from her hectic schedule to talk to us about her craft.

Jo Verrent reviews eight disability-related shows at the Edinburgh Festival

Tanya Raabe reviews Laurence Clark sizing himself up to find out just how evil he can be

Liz Carr is taking disability comedy to new boundaries with her latest show

It Hasn’t Happened Yet! is a comedy about comedy that asks just who and what a disabled comedian can actually laugh at these days? Mandy Redvers-Rowe caught Liz Carr's performance at the Unity Theatre, Liverpool on 21 November 2009

BBC 2 recently aired a 55 minute documentary charting portrayal of disability on TV over the last 50 years. Narrated by David Walliams the programme looks at the journey from Ironside to Cast Offs, and from Monty Python to The Office and Little Britain. Colin Hambrook comments.

Disabled cartoonist Dave Lupton has a unique cutting edge 'disability vision', and is currently looking for support to bring his cartoons to a wider audience.

Comedian Frankie Boyle has hit the news for making jokes at the expense of learning disabled people during his sell-out tour. Victoria Wright, writer and star of Channel 4s Cast Offs, writes him an open letter.