Luminous Soul Dance Project are prerparing to showcase their latest performance ’SPLIT’ in the Long Gallery at Stormont on Monday 2nd July for an invited audience of MLAs, family and friends. The special dance presentation will celebrate the group’s continuing success at professionalising dance for people with disabilities in Northern Ireland.

Luminous Soul in performance

The Minister first saw a performance by the Luminous Souls at an event in February and was so impressed that she extended an invitation to them to perform for the MLAs at Stormont.

The recent performance had been hosted by the Belfast based arts and disability company Open Arts, who devised the Luminous Soul project and who are funded by the Legacy Trust UK’s Connections programme.

Open Arts are part of the Connections programme, set up to help build a cultural and sporting legacy from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. The Connections Programme is managed by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.

Kate Ingram from Open Arts explained: “Through Luminous Soul we hope to identify and train disabled people who have real potential to dance in a professional company or to be dance teachers.  This is the first time disabled people in Northern Ireland have been offered an opportunity of this sort.” 

The performance at Stormont provides an opportunity for the Luminous Soul disabled dancers to showcase the excellent achievements that they have made towards becoming professional contemporary dancers; a first for Northern Ireland. 

Caroline Bowditch is working with the group and her extensive experience as a dancer and choreographer with a disability, working with disabled and non-disabled dancers means that she constantly challenges performers’ expectations of their own limitations. This, in turn, challenges and inspires her audiences.

Marian Clark de Monreal, Legacy Trust UK Programme Co-ordinator, commented: “The Luminous Soul programme focuses on developing aspirations and achieving excellence in the medium of dance. This exciting programme encourages disabled people to build their dance skills, helping them achieve their full artistic potential.”