Based in Durham, North Carolina, Proxemic Media is inherently infused with the artistic experience of Myra Weise’s background as a dancer and choreographer. Her professional dance training in ballet, modern dance, Capoeira (Angola), and West African dance began in the early 2000s in Asheville, NC, and continued at the American Dance Festival, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and in Brazil. She received her B.A. in Dance Studies from UNC-Greensboro in 2007. She also has global expertise, having travelled extensively as the Company Manager for the Pilobolus, Inc. dance troupe, to such places as Germany, Kuwait, Lebanon, and Israel. She founded Proxemic Media in 2022 to provide individual artists the tools to offer accessible arts presentations.
Betsy Ludwig is an accessibility consultant working with nonprofits, businesses, cultural organizations and civic groups to make services and programs welcoming and inclusive to people with disabilities. She retired in 2022 from Arts Access North Carolina after serving as executive director for 8 years. Prior to Arts Access she worked in the disability field in health care agencies, Public School’s and community nonprofits. The overall impact of Betsy’s work has been to create an increasingly inclusive arts, education and nonprofit community that has embraced accessibility as a core value and has enhanced knowledge and skill for making accessibility a reality. Betsy has a social work degree from Salem college and a master’s degree in Therapeutic Recreation from UNC Chapel Hill.
OVERVIEW OF SESSIONS
Workshop No. 1: MARCH 24, 6 PM – 8:00 PM Foundations of Accessibility: Language, Current Practices & Accommodations Guest Speakers feature Bryan Rusch, Max Pulley and Kim Tyler
Workshop No. 2: APRIL 7, 6 PM – 8:00 PM Venues and the Creative Process: Negotiating Resources & Planning for Access
Workshop No. 3: APRIL 28, 6 PM – 8:00 PM Marketing and Communications: Relationship Building with Disability Communities Guest Speakers feature ShaLeigh Comerford and Chemae Mebane
Guest Speakers & Bios
Chemae Mebane is a Raleigh based disability advocate, college student and recent participant in the Envision Dance Production with Shaleigh Dance Works. She is a currently a Junior at William Peace University majoring in Business and plans to pursue a career working to ensure Blind and Low Vision people have full access to pursue their ambitions and dreams.
Max Pulley is a multi-faceted artist, disability advocate and sensory-friendly art instructor dedicated to making art accessible to all. Max has developed neurodivergent guides for the NCMA, took part in the City of Raleigh Learning Community, and shared their experiences on accessibility at the LEAD Conference. Max’s own art, which spans multiple mediums, is often inspired by the natural world and interwoven with magical elements, emphasizing rich sensory experiences.
Bryan Rusch is a 5th year PhD candidate in the Art History program at Duke University. Bryan’s primary research is on the history of medical architecture, focusing on the 19th Century. His scholarly work is supplemented by an ethos of community building and culture work which centers disability.
Kim Tyler is a dedicated social worker, disability advocate and artist based in Durham North Carolina. For over nine years, Kim has served as a Social Worker for NC Services for the Blind, bringing lived experience, compassion, and expertise to those she serves. Kim holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Florida and a master’s in social work from NC Central University. As an artist, she finds joy in painting landscapes, crafting painted gourd art, and occasionally leading art classes.
ShaLeigh Comerford (she/her) is a neuro eclectic Irish & Native American choreographer and the Executive Artistic Director of ShaLeigh Dance Works, a nonprofit dance-theater company dedicated to inspiring people of all abilities, social backgrounds, cultures, and generations with the transformative power of dance. Her choreography and commissions have been presented throughout the United States and abroad. She is a recipient of the National Disability Employment Awareness Award, Jan Van Dyke Legacy Award, Ella Pratt Fountain Artist Award and the Institute of Contemporary Art and International Cultural Exchange Award. She currently serves as Adjunct Professor of dance at Washington & Lee University. She has served as a member of the statewide NC Arts Statewide Accessibility Cohort and is currently a member of the UpROOTing Ableism workgroup for Alternate ROOTS where she also serves on the Executive Committee.
Funding provided by “Durham Culture & Arts – Invest to Restart” a program of the Durham Arts Council supported by the City of Durham American Rescue Plan funds. Durham Arts Council will distribute funds through December 2025, to help support individual artists and arts and culture-focused nonprofit organizations and businesses as they rebuild, recover, and grow.