20 - 25 January
DEAN, DON’T DANCE!
Written by Dean Nash
There are only two kinds of people in the world: disabled people, and pre-disabled people. Dean’s just ahead of the f#ckin curve!
Dean loves musical theatre. Dean is also a working actor who’s spent half his life in audition rooms. So why do dance calls fill him with dread? Simple: people with cerebral palsy are seldom revered for their flawless balance or silky- smooth hand-eye coordination.
Dean, Don’t Dance! uses a slate of original songs, bad clipart, and stories about huffing nose beers in the accessible bathrooms, to have a wider conversation about “otherness” and the journey to discerning the difference between how you feel about yourself, and how you’ve been choreographed to.
Winner of the “Commitment & Innovation in Access Award” at the 2025 Sydney Fringe festival, Dean, Don’t Dance! intertwines Audio Description and Auslan into the storytelling, creating a shared, universal - and for most audiences an entirely new - theatre experience.
Cast and Creative Team
Creator & Performer: Dean Nash
Stage Manager/Operator: Pearl Junor
Audio Describers: Emma Bedford & Charley Allanah
Auslan Interpreter: Yasmin Dandachi
This listing is updated as cast/creatives are confirmed in the lead-up to the production, and if there are changes to the team.
Dates + Ticketing
Season: 20/01 - 25/01 (previews 20/01, opening night [invitation only] 21/01)
Times: Tues-Sat 9pm, Sunday 7pm
Ticket Prices:
Preview: $22 + booking fee
General Admission: $27.50 + booking fee
Approximate Run Time: 50 minutes
Content Warnings: Talk of ableism, references to drug use, references to medical trauma