Dozens of people with Parkinson’s and MS danced the stars of heaven this weekend in the Noorddam center in Amstelveen, despite their limitations. Participants were challenged to sit or stand their best moves to show. That made for a lot of fun.
“Sport is good, music is good, and dance is sport and music,” explains Dido van Danspark in front of the NH Nieuws camera. “So it’s very good for the brain, for the body and for the mind.”
Dancing is a broad concept this afternoon, which is an initiative of Bovenkerker Edwin Barentsen and Danspark. WWhile one participant is swinging exuberantly, another sticks to the rhythmic movement of the feet. However, teacher Dido encourages those present to ‘make their movements bigger’. “If you notice: he has it, then you do something else. That way you actually have a conversation with your body.”
‘Keep energy levels high’
And that conversation should actually be held more often, says one of the participants. “Actually, I have to do this all day, keep my energy level high enough that I can walk with a cane at all.” Present Wim has temporarily stopped the ‘conversation’ on the dance floor and is handed a drink. “There was a danger that I would go down,” he says.
Participants in a wheelchair need not fear a fall, but will also notice the limitations this afternoon. “It’s more difficult in a wheelchair,” said one woman. “But it’s going pretty well. You don’t want to lag behind the rest of the group. That’s the challenge.”