Chemaine Cooke

Think about a dance floor—one person dancing alone—and the confidence that gives others.

Then a second person joins, and a third. These people are explorers, where others will follow. Every dance floor starts with one.

Dancing is connection. Its saying hello. Its saying goodbye. Its making new friends and bonding with old ones. Its flirtation; Its the beginning of a life together.

It is celebration, community and social bonding.

Dancing seems spontaneous, but its curated and created for a specific time and space.

I create those spaces. I organise events. I produce shows. I improvise performances. I dance, and I make dance floors.

A dance is a collaborative space between dancers, or between dancer and audience, and when we collaborate, we create something greater than we can create alone.

My career as a dancer, producer, and facilitator has taken me to study in Salford and Newcastle, working with the philosophy of dance and disability inspired my views on creating inclusive spaces and the social equality within them.

My work in site-specific performance has shown me the power of using space to make a statement—a statement about our culture and what we choose to share as a community.

Dance is strongest when it is shared: shared within communities, across abilities, and throughout society. It is built on the foundations of inclusivity and dance disability practice, and on the belief that everyone is equal in movement.

Make friends. Start relationships. Enjoy being together.

That is how you make a dance floor.