Episode 132: The Beauty of Difference — Elisabeth Motley

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra interviews</span> <a href= "https://www.elisabethmotley.com/"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Elisabeth Motley</span></a><span style= "font-weight: 400;">,</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">an award-winning, Brooklyn-based choreographer, scholar, and teacher, who is using her platform to make dance accessible to all. Motley — who holds a BFA from the Juilliard School and an MFA from Goddard College — has focused her work on neurodivergence, crip theory, and disability as choreographic sites. Elisabeth also currently teaches choreography at a New York City-based university, while pursuing her Ph.D. at a UK-based university.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Elisabeth’s work has garnered vast amounts of praise — her work has won several awards and been featured in numerous dance and arts festivals. Elisabeth has focused her life on harnessing the inherent creativity in disability and bringing it to the stage. And her own story is just as inspiring as her world-changing work. On the podcast, Motley walks through her entire journey of peaks and valleys and helps audiences gain a new way of thinking about disability and the arts. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Moving Quotes:</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"The world has been ready to embrace difference for a long time. People are thinking about the beauty of difference, and it's becoming more a part of our cultural discussion."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"First thought, best thought... Trust your instincts. Follow your intuition. Follow your passion and your desire."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"What is the inherent creativity that is a part of adversity? That is a part of challenge? Because it's there. And it's definitely there in the disabled community."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Being told 'no' is not an invitation to stop.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"I'm hoping to impart new knowle