Kinetic Light, a disability art collective, performed a duet called Under Momentum at Lincoln Center in February. The performance shows the joys of continuous motion, the allure of speed, and the beautiful futility of resisting gravity and is performed on a series of ramps, and the artists interchange between wheelchair and floor movement. We speak with Alice Sheppard, founder of Kinetic Light, who performed in Under Momentum, about the performance, the joys of moving the body, and access in the arts.

In this audio story you'll also hear audio descriptions from Under Momentum that describe the visual experience of the performance for those who are blind or have low vision. These are not just an add-on to the show, but a full and complete way of experiencing the performance. Audimance, Kinetic Light's signature approach to audio description was created by artist/engineer Laurel Lawson.You'll also hear from Miranda Hoffner, the associate director of accessibility at Lincoln Center. Under Momentum is an experience curated by disabled performers for a disabled audience and Kinetic Light worked with Lincoln Center to provide several access points to the performance including deaf and hearing ASL interpreters, captioning for hard of hearing or deaf folks, haptic wires that people could touch to feel vibrations during the performance, and a quiet room for people who might become overstimulated. There was also a “choose what you pay model” for tickets, because cost is also a barrier to accessing art.

Image Descriptions:Alice is a multiracial Black woman with short curly hair. Laurel is a white person with cropped teal hair. They both wear shimmery metallic costumes. In the photo Alice Sheppard kneels at the base of the ramp, with her back and wheels facing the camera. She reaches her arms high in a V. Laurel Lawson peers at her from behind the ramp.