Fireside Tour on Disabled Joy
In 2024, Well Adapt toured around the UK to answer the question: What is disabled joy and how do we get more of it?
Well Adapt founder Georgia Bondy met up with entrepreneur Nikki Adebiyi, co-founder of Quiplash Amelia Lander-Cavallo, artist Christopher Samuel, dancer Little Peaches, and Paralympian Carly Tait in a series of captivating fireside chats on disabled joy.
This tour was part of a series of events and projects exploring the concept of disabled joy and the many ways it is experienced. These talks brought discussions of disabled joy around the country and engaged with Disabled people in different cities.
London: Nikki Adebiyi
The first event was ‘On Disabled Joy with Nikki Adebiyi’ on 16th October. The event included a talk with Nikki & Georgia, followed by a Community Meet & Mingle. It was held at Brixton House in London.
Nikki Adebiyi is a dedicated advocate for mental health and social justice, fuelled by her personal journey of triumph over adversity while building a career.
As Founder of Bounce Black, she leads initiatives to support the workplace and wellbeing needs of Black professionals.
Wearing many hats as a writer, speaker, consultant, and life coach, Nikki is also the visionary behind Good Vibes Good Trouble, a conscious fashion brand promoting joyful activism.
With steadfast commitment to driving impactful change, Nikki fearlessly champions diversity, equity, justice, and inclusion, earning recognition on Women Beyond the Box’s 2023 Top 50 Influential Neurodivergent Women list.
Sheffield: Amelia Lander-Cavallo
The second event was ‘On Disabled Joy with Amelia Lander-Cavallo (Co-founder of Quiplash)’ on 24th October. This event took place at The Circle, Sheffield and included a talk with Amelia & Georgia.
Amelia Lander-Cavallo has 20 years of experience as an actor, singer, musician, drag king, circus aerialist, burlesque performer and podcast host.
They also have pioneered research in integrated audio description, developing their own methodology of this form that they call “Queer AD”. Amelia has written multiple texts on performance and AD including the book Integrated Access In Live Performance (2022).
In drag, Amelia takes on the persona of Tito Bone, your average blind nonbinary bisexual drag king. Tito’s goal is to entertain the masses through comedy, political satire, IAD and song expressed through the most manly soprano vocals you will ever hear.
Amelia co-founded Quiplash with their wxfe Al Lander-Cavallo, Quiplash is a queer, disability led company making work that platforms queer disabled artists, with integrated audio description (IAD) at the core of the creative process.
Quiplash also trains and consults, and supports independent artists, small companies and organisations to make accessible and inclusive art for queer and disabled people.
Amelia’s recent work includes Press Play Turn On (Audible) Trans Filth and Joy (Trans Creative and Milk Presents), Unsightly Drag And Friends (Mighty Hoopla 2024) and Queer Fest (Dortmund, Germany).
Birmingham: Christopher Samuel
The third event was a talk with Christopher Samuel as part of the SIC Conference 2024 which took place in Birmingham on 29th October. This was a hybrid event where people could attend in person or online.
Christopher Samuel is a multi-disciplinary artist whose practice is rooted in identity and disability politics.
Often echoing the many facets of his own lived experience as a Black disabled man, his work tells stories, highlighting the often unseen experiences of his day to day life and those of others in similar circumstances.
His practice includes small detailed ink drawings, film, print, audio, research, and large installations.
Samuel works alongside galleries, museums, archives and other institutions to address missing representation in our cultural spaces.
Liverpool: Little Peaches
The next event was ‘On Disabled Joy with artist, Little Peaches’ on 7th November. This event took place at the Unity Theatre, Liverpool and was livestreamed online. It included a talk with Little Peaches and Georgia, then a Meet & Mingle for attendees.
Little Peaches is an award-winning dancer with more than 25 years experience. She’s been booked in 12 countries around the world from the rainforest in Australia to the largest burlesque show in the world in Las Vegas- The Burlesque Hall of fame. She’s also been named in the 50 most influential burlesque figures in the world, twice.
Peaches creates acts that give a glimpse into the lives disabled people live. She believes wholeheartedly that everyone can dance, even if only with breath. She teaches this and how to embrace and accept how our bodies move and don’t move in her meditative dance classes.
Through all her travels her heart lies with her show DisabiliTease. This passion project grew out of a chat she had with her Burlesque Mumma back home in Australia who also has a disability. We agreed that one day we would both dance in our wheelchairs in a duet getting our clothes stuck in each others wheels ripping them off. Finding an accessible stage to do this was going to be a mission. Thus DisabiliTease was born. A cabaret starring amazing disabled performers from across the globe. DisabiliTease boasts dancers, singers, poets, comedians and so much more in an accessible environment for both performers and audience members.
Little Peaches believes that we should be able to celebrate our bodies and minds in all forms and vows to dance till this is no longer a fight.
Manchester: Carly Tait
The last event was ‘On Disabled Joy with Paralympian Carly Tait’ on 8th November. It took place at HOME Manchester and was streamed online. It included a talk about Carly’s incredible journey and how she finds disabled joy in her life, then a Mingle & Meet.
Carly Tait is a mum of two, Paralympian and disability advocate working with global organisations to drive their diversity and inclusion goals.
With a focus on intersectionality, Carly proactively drives conversations around disability and women’s health, pregnancy, fertility and reproductive health.