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Ems Coombes is the founder and project manager of Strictly Collaborative - an inclusive theatre company based in Plymouth. Her blog documents her journey as an emerging disabled artist; includes interviews with a series of artist/ performers; and sets about inventing a treasure hunt for those key inspirational moments in a disabled artists life.

Poem inspired by Sovay Berrimen's New Voices workshop
14 February 2011

Blog

'From Another Side' was a performance I wrote about my experiences of having a stroke when I was 17. I would like to revamp it and bring it back into reality but I am scared. I have been thinking about it for ages but the fear is to strong at the moment. There are a lot of things that I would love to do but i don't know how others will feel, whether they will want me to disturb there life. I am turning into a wimp in my old age. FEEL THE FEAR BUT DO IT ANYWAY. From Another Side Throw 'em in at...

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On being a disabled person
9 February 2011

Blog

When I was 17, I had a brain haemorrhage and a stroke. I had never worked with a disabled person. In no way did I think of myself as a disabled person. Even though I used a walking stick. Which is a lovely signifier of disability. The first time I realised I was a disabled person was about four or five years later when I was at university. And we did a project with The Priory, which is the Community of St Mark and St Elias in Totnes, which does work integrating mentally and physically disabled...

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The birth of Strictly Collaborative
1 February 2011

Blog

I had never worked with any disabled people. But then I found myself a disabled person. I found it difficult to understand why people didn't know how to react to me once I had become a disabled person. I also found it really frustrating and thought it was a shame because I couldn’t see why that would be. It makes no sense to me why we’ve been – we’ve been sort of kept in our own environments and not brought together. So that we know – we know how we each other...

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