BUFFALO, N.Y. — The coronavirus pandemic forced countless organizations to pivot, change their plans, and get creative.
Despite all the challenges, Danceability has not only adapted but also found new ways to let its dancers shine.
Danceability is a nonprofit, dance and movement program for children and adults with special needs.
"The idea of just shutting it down was never an option," said Robin Bishop, the co-founder and executive director, when reflecting on this past year.
Bishop explained being in an art field, you have to be a creative problem solver, and that's exactly what she and her team did navigating the last several months.
They shifted their in-person classes to Facebook Live at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, then went back to in-person instruction in September, before returning to virtual classes a few months later. Since February, they've been back in the studio, with COVID-19 protocols in place. They kept safety a top priority, while never skipping a beat.
"We wanted them to have the opportunity to come to dance each week even if that was the only thing that was 'normal' to them," said Bishop.
However, a big question lingered: What to do for the annual recital?
Bishop decided back in January that a live performance likely wouldn't be in the cards this year. In looking for a safe and unique alternative, she got an idea.
"Just one day I went, 'dance music videos!' " Bishop said. "We are going to have our dancers do dance music videos. We're not going to tape the dances they would do on stage and show them to families. We're going to create dance music videos. Straight out of MTV, 80s etc."
Filming of the videos wrapped up last weekend. Bishop told 2 On Your Side the best part was seeing all the dancers' reactions.
She explained, "We had told them our stage is going to be a set now, but they didn't know what that would be. I barely knew what that would be. So when they walked into the studio and saw the lights and the camera and the greenscreen, they were like, 'Wow!' "
The 14th annual performance, appropriately titled "The Show Must Go On," will be played at the Transit Drive-In Theatre on June 9 and 10. It will also streamed online.
"In all of this chaos, to have something to look forward to, to learn something new, to try to do things differently than you've done before," Bishop said. "I think you have to be willing to think outside the box to get anything done in the current environment. I truly believe in that."
For more information on Danceability and 'The Show Must Go On,' click here.