Disability culture in theater, dance, visual arts, music, and performance. This page celebrates disabled artists and the rich tradition of disability arts.
Disability arts is a cultural movement—art made by disabled people that reflects disability experience, challenges ableism, and celebrates disability culture. This is distinct from "art therapy" or art about disability made by non-disabled people.
Legend:
Disability arts emerged from the disability rights movement, asserting that disabled people have a distinct culture worth celebrating. Key principles:
By disabled people: Created and controlled by disabled artists, not about disability from an outside perspective.
Disability as culture: Not "overcoming" narratives but exploration of disability experience, community, and identity.
Political and personal: Often challenges ableism, medical model, and societal barriers.
Aesthetic innovation: Disability drives new forms—Deaf performance, integrated dance, crip aesthetics.
"Disability arts is not inspirational. It's transformational." — Disability arts community
✦ 🏛️ Sins Invalid (San Francisco) – Performance project centering disabled people of color and queer/trans disabled people. Developed the disability justice framework. Essential.
🏛️ National Disability Theatre – Deaf and disabled actors in professional theater.
🏛️ Phamaly Theatre Company (Denver) – All-disabled cast productions.
🏛️ Theater Breaking Through Barriers (New York) – Disabled actors in mainstream and original works.
🏛️ Dancing Wheels (Cleveland) – Integrated dance company with wheelchair dancers.
🏛️ AXIS Dance Company (Oakland) – World-renowned physically integrated dance.
🏛️ Full Radius Dance (Atlanta) – Physically integrated contemporary dance.
🌍 🏛️ Graeae Theatre Company (London) – Leading UK disabled-led theater. Breakthrough productions and training. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Candoco Dance Company (London) – Internationally acclaimed integrated dance. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Stopgap Dance Company – Integrated contemporary dance. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Deaf Men Dancing – Deaf male dance company. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Birds of Paradise (Scotland) – Scottish disability-led theater. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Back to Back Theatre (Australia) – Ensemble of actors with intellectual disabilities. International touring. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ DanceAbility International – Integrated dance methodology and company. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Remix Dance Project (Canada) – Integrated dance. 🌍
🏛️ National Theatre of the Deaf – Founded 1967. Pioneering Deaf theater in America.
🏛️ Deaf West Theatre (Los Angeles) – Known for ASL productions including Broadway's Spring Awakening.
🏛️ Cleveland Signstage Theatre – Deaf and hearing integrated productions.
✦ 🏛️ Sins Invalid – [See Performance Companies]
🏛️ Phamaly Theatre Company – All-disabled casts.
🏛️ Theater Breaking Through Barriers – Professional disabled actors.
🌍 🏛️ Graeae – [See Performance Companies] 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Back to Back Theatre 🌍
Spring Awakening (Deaf West, Broadway 2015) – ASL/spoken English integrated production.
Children of a Lesser God (Broadway revivals) – Deaf actors in Deaf roles.
Cost of Living (2017) – Martyna Majok play featuring disabled characters and actors.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – [Note: Autistic character typically played by non-autistic actors; debated representation]
✦ 🏛️ AXIS Dance Company (Oakland) – Founded 1987. Wheelchair dancers and standing dancers. International tours, high artistic quality.
🏛️ Dancing Wheels (Cleveland) – Founded 1980. Wheelchair and standing dancers.
🏛️ Full Radius Dance (Atlanta) – Contemporary integrated company.
🌍 🏛️ Candoco Dance Company (London) – International touring, collaborations with major choreographers. 🌍
🌍 🏛️ Stopgap Dance Company (UK) 🌍
🌍 🏛️ DanceAbility International – Alito Alessi's methodology for mixed-ability dance. 🌍
🏛️ Gallaudet Dance Company – University company.
🌍 🏛️ Deaf Men Dancing (UK) 🌍
Various Deaf dance artists working in visual rhythm and spatial movement.
🏛️ USA Dance Wheelchair Program – Competitive wheelchair dance.
🎨 Chelsie Hill's Rollettes – Wheelchair dance team (founded by paralyzed dancer).
🎨 Judith Smith – AXIS Dance Company co-founder.
🎨 Alice Sheppard – Kinetic Light founder, wheelchair dancer/choreographer.
🎨 Alito Alessi – DanceAbility founder.
🌍 🎨 Marc Brew – Scottish disabled choreographer. 🌍
✦ 🎨 Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) – Mexican painter, disability icon. Chronic pain, spinal damage from accident. Surrealist self-portraits centering body and pain.
🎨 Riva Lehrer – Painter, writer. Portraits of disabled people. "Circle Stories" series.
🎨 Sunaura Taylor – Painter, writer, disability studies scholar. Animal and disability rights intersection.
🌍 🎨 Yinka Shonibare – British-Nigerian artist with physical disability. 🌍
🎨 Christine Sun Kim – Deaf artist working in sound, drawing, performance.
🎨 Joseph Grigely – Deaf conceptual artist.
🎨 Katherine Sherwood – Painter, post-stroke.
🎨 Sandie Yi – Korean American disabled sculptor and installation artist.
VSA (Very Special Arts) – Kennedy Center affiliate. [Note: Name and approach debated]
🌍 Shape Arts (UK) – Disability-led arts development organization. 🌍
Disability Arts Online gallery – Virtual gallery showcasing disability art. 🌍
"Crip aesthetics" describes visual and artistic approaches emerging from disability culture:
🎨 Sean Forbes – Deaf rapper and hip-hop artist. D-PAN founder.
🎨 Mandy Harvey – Singer who lost hearing as adult. America's Got Talent.
🎨 Evelyn Glennie – Deaf percussionist, classical/experimental.
🎨 Signmark – Finnish Deaf rapper. 🌍
🎨 Stevie Wonder – Blind soul/R&B legend.
🎨 Ray Charles – Blind R&B pioneer.
🎨 Teddy Pendergrass – Soul singer, paralyzed in 1982, continued performing.
🎨 Itzhak Perlman – Violinist, polio survivor, wheelchair user.
🎨 Django Reinhardt – Jazz guitarist with partially paralyzed hand.
🎨 Joni Mitchell – Chronic illness, polio as child.
🎨 Lamar Hill – Rapper, stroke survivor.
🎨 Viktoria Modesta – Amputee singer and performance artist.
🎨 The Kids of Widney High – Band of musicians with developmental disabilities.
🎨 Yo Tremendo – Portland band featuring musicians with developmental disabilities.
🏛️ D-PAN (Deaf Professional Arts Network) – ASL music videos, Deaf music access.
🏛️ OpenAir Circus – Disabled aerial performers.
🎨 Maysoon Zayid – Palestinian American comedian with cerebral palsy. TED talk viral. "I'm Not Your Inspiration."
🎨 Josh Blue – Comedian with cerebral palsy. Last Comic Standing winner.
🎨 Zach Anner – Comedian with cerebral palsy. YouTube, TV shows.
🎨 Drew Lynch – Comedian with stutter. America's Got Talent.
🌍 🎨 Lost Voice Guy (Lee Ridley) – UK comedian using AAC. Britain's Got Talent winner. 🌍
🌍 🎨 Adam Hills – Australian comedian, amputee. The Last Leg host. 🌍
🌍 🎨 Francesca Martinez – UK comedian with cerebral palsy. 🌍
🎨 Nina G – Comedian with stutter and dyslexia.
🌍 The Last Leg – UK Channel 4 show with disabled hosts. 🌍
Comedians with Disabilities Act – Touring comedy showcase.
See Documentaries & Films for comprehensive list.
🎬 Code of the Freaks (2020) – Disabled filmmakers analyze Hollywood representation.
🎬 CinemAbility (2018) – Jenni Gold's documentary on disability in film.
🎬 Fixed (2013) – Enhancement technologies and disability.
🎨 Jim LeBrecht – Crip Camp co-director, disabled.
🎨 Jennifer Brea – Unrest director, ME/CFS.
🎨 Jenni Gold – CinemAbility director, wheelchair user.
✦ 🎨 Alice Wong – Writer, activist, media creator. Disability Visibility Project.
🎨 Eli Clare – Writer, performer, disability/trans theorist.
🎨 Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha – Writer, performer, disability justice leader.
🌍 🎨 Mat Fraser – UK actor, performer, disability arts leader. 🌍
🎨 Kenny Fries – Poet, memoirist.
🎨 Jim Ferris – Crip poetry founder.
🎨 Petra Kuppers – Performance artist, disability culture scholar.
🎨 Neil Marcus – Performance artist, writer.
ReelAbilities Film Festival – Disability film festival in multiple cities.
Superfest – San Francisco disability film festival.
Disability Pride parades – Multiple cities (NYC, Chicago, LA, etc.)
🌍 Unlimited Festival – UK's largest disability arts commissioning program (Southbank Centre). 🌍
🌍 DaDaFest (Liverpool) – Major disability arts festival. 🌍
🌍 Disability Film Festival UK 🌍
🌍 Crip Fest (Australia) 🌍
Various international disability film festivals.
🌍 🏛️ Graeae Theatre Company – Professional training for disabled actors. 🌍
🏛️ National Theatre of the Deaf – Training programs.
🏛️ Phamaly – Training and mentorship.
Disability Studies programs at various universities include arts and culture focus.
Paul K. Longmore Institute – Disability history and culture.
1960s-70s: Disability rights movement creates culture of protest and community.
1977: 504 sit-in includes art, music, community culture.
1980s: Disability arts movement names itself; UK and US developments.
1987: AXIS Dance Company founded.
1990s: ADA passage; disability culture grows; academic recognition.
2000s: Disability arts gains mainstream visibility; Deaf West Broadway.
2010s: Social media enables disabled artists to build audiences.
2020: Crip Camp brings disability history to mainstream; pandemic highlights access.
Ed Roberts – Independent Living founder, cultural leader.
Judy Heumann – Activist whose story inspired artistic works.
Victoria Ann Lewis – Disability theater pioneer.
Cheryl Marie Wade – Disability arts performer and poet.
Sins Invalid collective – Disability justice and arts fusion.
To suggest additions:
This page celebrates disabled artists and disability arts culture.
Last updated: December 2025