Propel Dance are the UK’s first all-wheelchair professional dance company.

  • Model is a white woman wearing a blonde wig with black and blue face paint across her face. She is wearing a crown with rams horns, a skull, dark red flowers and black spikes. Model is in a wheelchair wearing a long maxi white/silver dress.

  • Two dancers are positioned in a diagonal line in their wheelchairs. One is leaning forward, looking over their left shoulder as the other dancer is holding onto the back of their wheelchair with their left arm straight up.

  • Dancer on the left is raising both arms over the dancer on the right, who is doing a deep backbend in their wheelchair with arms pushing away to opposite direction. Both are facing each other. one is wearing maxi silver dress the other all black.

  • 5 dancers in their wheelchairs are staggered facing the front. All wearing grey t-shirts with propel dance logo. on the left is Helen wearing the same top. She has straight past the shoulder length hair and wearing glasses.

  • dancer is in his wheelchair doing a deep backbend with head tilted back and holding crutches , extending both arms out to either side in a line.

  • image is showing a diverse group of dancers positioned in a circle. Everyone is lifting their right arm and leg as they warm up. Majority of the group is wearing black and dark green.

  • Dancer at the front is reaching out to the front with their right arm, looking over their left shoulder as the dancer behind them is moving towards them. Both are smiling, wearing brown and baige trousers and shirts. Front dancer is wearing a mask.

  • Two company wheelchair user dancers are side by side with both of their arms and heads up. this image is captured as a screenshot on NBC news segment 'Flipping the Script'.

LATEST NEWS

Propel Dance Artists at the Dearborn International Para Dance Sport Competition!

Propel Dance artists proudly represented GB at the Dearborn International Para Dance Sport Competition held in Detroit, Michigan, on the 10th & 11th August 2024. This incredible opportunity was made possible through generous funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority International Growth Fund (in partnership with the British Council).

Two of our dedicated dancers, Rebecca and Lauren, showcased their talents on an international stage, making us incredibly proud.

Rebecca, now fully classified as a competitive athlete, made her international debut by competing in the women’s solo freestyle class 2 category, where she secured a commendable 13th place. She also competed in the women’s solo ballroom & Latin class 2 category, achieving a 9th place finish. These are outstanding results for Rebecca's first international competition, and we congratulate her on all her hard work and dedication. Her achievements in the USA are a testament to her skill and perseverance, and we look forward to seeing her continue to shine in the future.

Lauren also made us proud by competing in the open category (non-sanctioned) freestyle event, where she secured an impressive 1st place! We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Lauren for this fantastic achievement.

This trip was made possible thanks to special permission from World Ability Sport, allowing our dancers to compete internationally despite the absence of an official Team GB for para dance sport following the closure of Para Dance Sport UK in 2023. As a new Team GB is being developed and NGB status is being applied for, Propel Dance remains committed to supporting our dancers as they compete in local, national, and international competitions as amateurs. We also continue our work in promoting and developing employment opportunities for wheelchair dancers, helping them to pursue professional careers in the arts.

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We are officially a Community Interest Company!

As part of becoming a ‘CIC’ we have now incorporated Freewheeling into our company. Freewheelin will now be ran by Propel Dance and be a part of our Community outreach provision. 

To read more about Freewheelin and our community classes click here.

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Next show

We will be making a guest appearance at the charity Gala ‘Empower in Motion - a Ballet Inclusive’ on 7th February 2024.

Celebrating Children Today’s 30th Anniversary, we will be performing The Snow Queen solo at Sadlers Wells in London.

Tickets are on sale.

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NBC News Coverage

We are excited to share that we have been featured in one of NBC News segments ‘Flipping The Script’!

Watch the full interview here.

We are pleased to continue to have conversations about the importance of making professional work for and with wheelchair dancers.

Huge congratulations to our company member Rebecca Fowler and Artistic Director Helen Mason who are featured in this interview.

Past Performance(s)

Two dancers are side by side leaning forward in their wheelchairs as they move towards the front of the stage. Both dancers are smiling wide.
A group picture of some of the cast and production team. Cast members are in the front line wearing their costumes as the rest of the company is in line directly behind them. The back line is wearing grey Propel Dance t-shirts. Everyone is smiling.

In April 2023, Propel Dance toured our inaugural production of The Snow Queen to 3 Midlands venues, showcasing our R&D to sold-out audiences. 

With support from Arts Council England, Sense, Cerebral Palsy Midlands and our three venue partners, we played to packed-out auditoriums and sold out shows at The Old Library in Mansfield, the Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) in Birmingham and the Arena Theatre in Wolverhampton.

Watch a trailer from The Snow Queen R&D here:

Trailer from The Snow Queen R&D: April 2023. Copyright Propel Dance & Music Copyright to Kris Halpin.

four wheelchair dancers are at the centre in a diamond shape formation, all have their arms angled at 90 degrees, left arm down and right arm up. there's two camera men. One is kneeling down on the left. the other is kneeling down far back left.
5 dancers in their wheelchairs are staggered facing the front. All wearing grey t-shirts with propel dance logo. on the left is Helen wearing the same top. She has straight past the shoulder length hair and wearing glasses.

During the tour of The Snow Queen we were thrilled to appear in the press across the country, including being featured on BBC Midlands Today, ITV News and Channel 5 News. An article was also published in The Guardian (click to read here).

Features also appeared in The Stage, One Dance UK and The Wonderful World of Dance, specialist disability publications such as Blue Badge Style, Independent Living and Living With Disability. On BBC Radio WM and BBC Radio Nottingham, as well as in Birmingham Living Magazine.

We made a live appearance on Steph’s Packed Lunch on Channel 4. For that full interview & excerpt from the show, go to the All 4 website/app to watch on demand.

  • group of wheelchair user dancers are in a tight circle facing each other. All are smiling and looking up at Helen as she stands with them holding hands.

    The Snow Queen 2023 show at the MAC, Birmingham.

  • Press day with BBC Midlands, ITV NEWS and Channel 5 news.

  • Behind the scenes of our Radio interview.

  • Behind the stage of our show at the Mac, Birmingham.

  • Press day with Channel 5 and ITV News.

  • Tech. rehearsal at the MAC.

  • A group picture of some of the cast and production team. Cast members are in the front line wearing their costumes as the rest of the company is in line directly behind them. The back line is wearing grey Propel Dance t-shirts. Everyone is smiling.

    The Snow Queen 2023 cast and production team at the Wolverhampton show.

  • Press interview with our music composer Kris Halpin.

  • Outreach dance workshop at FABRIC in Nottingham. Lead by Hayley Corah.

Education & Community

Throughout Summer 2023, we delivered numerous workshops, out and about across the UK in community and education settings including:

  • Northfield Beach Outdoor Festival SEN Day

  • Chadsgrove School

  • Valence School’s Arts Week


If you’d like us to come to your setting to deliver a workshop or perform an excerpt of the show, go to our opportunities page to find out more about workshops, or contact us.