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Movement as Meaning. Dance as Belonging.
In this episode of Why We Dance, Mia Tate welcomes Alice Sheppard for a powerful conversation about redefining dance through disability culture, collaboration, and lived experience.
Alice shares her unconventional path into dance, beginning in academia with music and medieval studies before movement reshaped how she understood her body and the world around her. A pivotal encounter with disabled dancer Homer Avila challenged long-held assumptions about who dance is for—and what it can communicate beyond traditional norms.
The conversation traces the founding and evolution of Kinetic Light, a disability-led arts company known for creating visually striking, culturally rich work rooted in disabled experience. Alice speaks candidly about collaboration as a creative practice, the responsibility of representation in the arts, and the essential role audiences play in meaning-making.
Together, Mia and Alice explore dance as both a deeply personal and collective act—one that holds space for resilience, interdependence, and universal human truths. This episode is a meditation on creativity, movement, and why dance remains one of our most honest forms of expression.
Episode Timestamps:
[00:00] Introduction and Initial Thoughts on Disability Representation
[00:52] Welcoming Alice Shepherd
[01:30] Alice Shepherd's Background and Description
[02:33] Introduction of Mia Tate
[03:41] Alice Shepherd's Artistic Journey
[04:43] Exploring the Concept of Movement
[08:02] Alice Shepherd's Early Life and Musical Background
[11:05] Transition to Medieval Studies and Dance
[17:01] The Influence of Homer Avila
[22:03] Challenges and Breakthroughs in Dance
[27:35] The Connection with the Audience
[29:45] Founding Kinetic Light
[30:41] Collaborating with Michael Mag
[31:32] Forming the Dance Company
[32:19] Creating Art Rooted in Disability Culture
[36:21] The Impact of the Performance Wired
[40:14] Responsibilities as an Artist and Audience
[44:49] The Collaborative Nature of Dance
[51:40] Processing and Preparing for Future Projects
[53:14] Reflections on Dance and Writing
[01:01:03] A Letter on Why I Dance
Links & Resources:
Mia Tate’s IMDb
Alice Sheppard Dance Magazine
Kinetic Light – Official Website
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Podcast Producer: S.J. Nichols (Seannon Gonzalez)
Executive Producer: Meredith Gooderham
Production Studio: Caspian Studios
Camera Operator: Kai Irvine
Assistant Camera: Ben Drummond
Production also by: Dark to Light Productions
Thank you to: Davies Reid Rugs
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