Dancer Mary Verdi-Fletcher is a pillar of the Northeast Ohio arts community and a pioneer in the world of dance.
Since 1980, her company Dancing Wheels has revolutionized what it means to be a dancer. This July the Cleveland Arts Prize winner, 69, celebrates 45 years of Dancing Wheels and is determined to continue performing until the company’s 50th.
The Dancing Wheels Company is a physically integrated dance company comprising dancers with and without disabilities.
“There's a saying that access to the arts is a right, not a privilege,” Verdi-Fletcher said. "We have a byline under our title as the World Center for Integrated Dance and Arts Access. So, we really want to make the arts accessible to all people.”
Verdi-Fletcher was born with spina bifida in the 1950s.
“Babies that were born back in that time with spina bifida were oftentimes left to die or be institutionalized,” she said.
Her mother was distraught and didn’t know what to do, but Verdi-Fletcher’s grandmother gave her hope after doctors wanted to institutionalize her.
“My grandmother said, ‘You take her home, and you do the best you can, and if she survives, you've done the best you can. And if she doesn't, you've done the best you can.’ So, she took me home,” she said.
As a child, she loved to move and would dance in her wheelchair.
“I moved to the point where I broke the axle off the wheel,” she said.
During the disco era of the 70s, Verdi-Fletcher would go out dancing with friends.
“Some of my friends were just doing, you know, the Hustle, and I would sit back and watch it. And then, finally, one of them said, 'Well, let's just try,'” she said. “We did some dancing and twirled around the wheelchair.”
Her disco routines led to her forming her own company, Dancing Wheels, in 1980. Through her company and the Dancing Wheels dance school, she has inspired others to follow her lead.
“They see ability on stage or in the class that we teach,” she said. “You don't have to say a word because when we set foot or wheel on stage, and we work together, people are seeing ability everywhere from the disabled and non-disabled dancers.”
Verdi-Fletcher is proud of her longevity.
“I pride myself in being able to dance still,” she said. “I'm dancing with 24-year-old people. Just the stamina to keep up with that is somewhat of a challenge. But I oftentimes forget my age. I think if you think young, you will be young, you know?”
