Contact: Mary Verdi Fletcher
President/Founding Artistic Director
216-272-1494
Marketing Manager
216-432-0306
For Immediate Release:
CLEVELAND, Ohio, April 24, 2026—
Dancing Wheels Company Celebrates Iconic Female Artists of the 1980s
On June 13, 2026, the Dancing Wheels Company will present its gala benefit performance, Ladies of the ‘80s! This extraordinary performance will also mark the Company’s 45th anniversary season.
About the Production:
This exciting event, held at the historic Mimi Ohio Theatre at Playhouse Square, will bring together a wide and diverse audience of (young and young at heart) dance and music enthusiasts who will enjoy high-energy music and memorable songs from female artists of the 1980s… music that made a mark on the music industry worldwide.
Dancing Wheels Company & School will proudly honor these fierce female artists of the 1980s who transformed the landscape of equal rights through their fearless dedication and remarkable artistry. With incredible choreography and well-known music, we will celebrate these singers and songwriters whose relentless determination and hard work have created a legacy of extraordinary performances lasting over four decades.
The 1980s marked a vibrant era for music, with numerous iconic female singers and vocalists rising to prominence. Remarkable figures such as Whitney Houston, Madonna, and Gloria Estefan transcended the realm of music, becoming influential figures in pop culture. They shaped everything from media to fashion and entertainment, showcasing their impressive voices, producing hit after danceable hit, and embracing their sexuality in ways previously considered taboo. Madonna pioneered political expression in music, a tradition that endures today. Women like Whitney Houston, Tina Turner, and Janet Jackson broke down barriers, paving the way for other Black women to become stars. The most popular genres of the decade included pop, punk, rock, R&B, and new wave, all of which featured outstanding female performers. Their musical legacy continues to thrive today, evident in the fusion of genres like gospel, pop, and R&B.
Dance has a rich history of iconic artists and dance makers whose vision and artistry have tested the course of time. The possibility of dancers with disabilities participating in this art form on an equal basis has changed considerably over the years. Now, dancers of all abilities are not only accepted but are encouraged to create and participate in dance in many ways.
The Dancing Wheels Company was founded on the principles of equity, inclusion, and diversity, and, for the past 45 years, has explored many ways to make dance inclusive and venturesome.
About the Choreographers:
Angelina DiFranco is a dance artist, writer, and choreographer in her fourth season with the Dancing Wheels Company, where she has toured internationally, choreographed repertoire, and earned the Physically Integrated Dance Teacher Certification. Most recently, she stepped into the role of Assistant Rehearsal Director. She graduated from Kent State University with honors in May 2023 and holds a BFA in dance and a BA in English with a concentration in professional writing. She has trained with Deeply Rooted, Koresh, Visceral, and the LA Contemporary Dance Company, has participated in residencies with choreographers such as Dianne McIntyre, Amy Hall Garner, Hope Boykin, Stefanie Batten Bland, Laura Smyth, Staycee Pearl, Tiffany Mills, and Dominic Moore-Dunson, and has danced professionally with InPulse Dance and MoJo Co.Lab. Alongside her work as a performing artist, Angelina is in her second season teaching at Studio J and Cleveland Dance Project. As a writer, she has taken part in See Chicago Dance’s critical writing fellowship and has been published in See Chicago Dance, Luna Negra, Brainchild, Arts Air, and The Movement Project’s Blog. As a choreographer, she has won Best Overall at the Kent State Film Festival and Best Experimental Film at the Highland Square Film Festival. Angelina’s choreography has been performed at Cleveland Dance Fest, Cleveland’s Museum of Contemporary Art, OhioDance Festival, CDF Akron Series, RADFest, and Small Plates Choreography Festival. Currently, Angelina is working with The Movement Project and NCCAkron as the 2026 LINK Residency Artist. This is the third piece she has choreographed for the Dancing Wheels Company.
Annette Ellis danced professionally with the Dancing Wheels Company for two seasons between 2023 and 2025. She graduated from Point Park University with a BFA in Modern Dance Performance and a minor in Business Management. Her dance background began in Classical Ballet and Circus Arts. Before her college career, Annette was one of three Americans in 2018 to represent the United States in the Geneè International Ballet Competition in Hong Kong. She also had the opportunity to perform on Broadway in the Actor’s Fund C.T.F.D 31st Jubilee, directed by Anne Marie DeAngelo, Disney’s NYC Summer Stage, Brooklyn Art Museum’s Basquiat Exhibit, and was a member of Boston-based company Mystique Illusions Dance Theatre. At Point Park, she performed the works by Kiesha Lalama, Rozanna Sweeny, Rocker Verastique, Judith Leifer-Bentz, and was a choreographer assistant to professor and choreographer Jae Man Joo. Annette’s choreographic experience includes “Freedom Happening” for Point Park Dance, and “Sunglasses at Night” and “To Have and To Hold” for the Dancing Wheels Company. Annette has taken a break from dance over the past year and works as a teacher’s assistant in PreK and high school classrooms at Boston College Campus School, a program for kids with severe, medically complex needs, ages 3 through 22.
Dianne McIntyre, a Cleveland native, has a national reputation as a dance innovator with an impressive career spanning five decades with choreography for dance, theatre, television, film, and opera. She is a Dance Magazine Award Honoree, Martha Hill Dance Fund Awardee, and a recent grant recipient from New England Foundation for the Arts/National Dance Project. McIntyre’s commissions include Dance Theatre of Harlem, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, GroundWorks DanceTheatre, Philadanco, numerous universities, and Dancing Wheels. 2026 marks her third choreographic work for Dancing Wheels. Her New York company, Sounds in Motion, for many years toured internationally and in major performing arts venues like the Joyce Theater, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Kennedy Center. The Sounds in Motion studio was a vital institution in Harlem where artists met, collaborated, and were nurtured.
Some of the company’s major works: Life’s Force; Take-Off from a Forced Landing, based on her mother’s stories as an aviator; and Their Eyes Were Watching God, inspired by the Zora Neale Hurston novel. In 1991, after extensive research, she recreated dance pioneer Helen Tamiris’ epic 1937 work How Long, Brethren? McIntyre’s screen credits include Beloved from Toni Morrison’s novel, Langston Hughes: The Dream Keeper, and Miss Evers’ Boys (Emmy nomination). Her work has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, London’s West End theatre, and over 35 U.S. regional theatres. Other awards include a John S. Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship, a Doris Duke Artist Award, a Dance/USA Honor Award, a Duke United States Artists Fellowship, National Black Theatre Teer Pioneer Award, Cleveland Arts Prize, a Woodie Award, two AUDELCOs, 3 Bessies/New York Dance and Performance Awards, a Helen Hayes Award, Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award from The Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences, American Dance Festival Distinguished Teaching Award, and two Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts Degrees (from SUNY Purchase and Cleveland State University). In 2026, McIntyre is a recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Arts Degree from Duke University.
Inspired to create work derived from her interviews and real-life narratives, McIntyre has conceptualized and directed her own “dance-driven dramas” that have appeared in both dance and theatre venues. Notable works are Open Door, Virginia! (1950s civil rights), and I Could Stop on a Dime and Get Ten Cents Change—A Ballroom Drama (her father’s stories). McIntyre’s current work on tour – at DANCECleveland in 2025 – is Dianne McIntyre Group In the Same Tongue with dancers, musicians, spoken poetry, and narration.
She has worked with renowned composers, writers, and directors, including Olu Dara, Abbey Lincoln, Max Roach, Hannibal Lokumbe, Amina Claudine Myers, Cecil Taylor, Diedre Murray, Ahmed Abdullah, Jonathan Demme, Woodie King, Jr, Rita Dove, Bartlett Sher, and Ntozake Shange. Mentors include Elaine Gibbs Redmond, Virginia Dryansky, Joan Hartshorne, Gus Solomons Jr., Louise Roberts, Rick Davis, and from OSU, Helen Alkire and Vera Blaine. Dianne McIntyre is the co-director with Risa Steinberg of the Jacob’s Pillow Ann & Weston Hicks Choreography Fellowship.
About the Benefit Gala:
A VIP pre-party will commence at 6:30 PM in the intimate BIN216 restaurant (transformed into an ‘80s club), where guests will enjoy a bountiful array of delectable hors d’oeuvres and sip on specialty beverages from that era. In the stunning lobby of the Mimi Ohio Theatre, guests will also enjoy an eclectic silent auction and interactive fun for all!
At 8:00 PM, audience members will be invited to a high-energy “dancing in your seats” experience with world premiere performances by the Dancing Wheels Company, created by amazing choreographers: Angelina DiFranco, Annette Ellis, and the legendary Dianne McIntyre…all featuring the music from the extraordinary sounds of women from the ‘80s era. A special appearance by the students of the School of Dancing Wheels will also showcase their talents with a joyous new work choreographed by Sara Lawrence-Sucato.
Following the performance, all guests will be invited back into the lobby for a champagne dessert reception to meet the artists and continue the festivities!
Ticket Information:
Tickets are $150 at the VIP level, $50 for general admission (which includes the performance and after party), and $35 per ticket for groups of 10 or more. To purchase tickets or for more information, go to http://www.dancingwheels.org/events or call 216-432-0306.
About the Company and School:
Under the Artistic Direction of Mary Verdi-Fletcher, America’s first professional wheelchair dancer, the Dancing Wheels Company is now in its 45th season. As a strong advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, Verdi-Fletcher opened the doors of opportunity for people with disabilities who desire to be on equal ground with their non-disabled peers. Based in Cleveland, Ohio, the Dancing Wheels Company educates and employs professionally trained dancers with and without disabilities. The Company tours globally with performances reaching over 6.5 million people since its inception. Educational outreach programs, under the direction of Sara Lawrence-Sucato, serve over 4,000 children and adults annually throughout Northeast Ohio. To learn more about the Dancing Wheels Company & School, visit www.dancingwheels.org.
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