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.
Have lived experience or expertise that could strengthen this page? We especially welcome perspectives on models not well represented here, including those from the Global South and Indigenous communities.
This page centers disabled people's expertise and is informed by disabled-led organizing globally. For questions or to suggest additions, see How to Contribute.
Last updated: January 2026