“People assume you have to be able to hear to dance and follow music,” the video begins. It only makes sense, right? Turns out that stigma is wrong. Music isn’t just noise. It’s feeling vibrations, feeling the beat and understanding the structure of the music and the lyrics.
Chris Fonseca proves that with his career. He’s a professional dancer and dance teacher. Oh yeah, and he’s profoundly deaf. Chris’ fascination with dancing began when he was a child. His dream was to become a dancer, but when it came to non-hearing dancers, the pickings were slim.
With no deaf role models to look up to as far as dancing was concerned, what did Chris do? He became his own hero. He taught himself to dance by “feeling” rather than hearing. What a lesson to learn here. Whenever we see something missing in this world, do we seek it out? Do we try to become that missing link?
Thankfully, Chris does have a cochlear implant, so he can hear a little now. But he has to work really hard at it. Chris said the first time he went to a dance class with a hearing teacher, it was terrible. He made so many mistakes.
His conclusion? To give up? Nope! That the world needed deaf teachers that used sign language to teach! So he became that teacher. His students absolutely love him! He always makes them feel comfortable, not out of place. Like they were made to dance. Not to mention, since he is deaf, he’s an amazing inspiration to them.
But Chris doesn’t just want to teach the deaf. He wants to integrate the deaf and the hearing into the same classes. “My passion is teaching,” he signs, “and to pass over that love and that passion and carry on breaking down barriers and doing what I love.”
While you may not know Chris, you’ve probably seen him before. A couple of years ago, he partnered with Smirnoff for its “We’re Open” campaign and Donae’o’s “Mami No Like” video.
“What’s special about the video,” Noisey writes. “Which sees the UK Funky stalwart and a crew of dancers take over an abandoned warehouse, is that one of the dancers – Chris Fonseca – is deaf. As a deaf dancer, Chris hasn’t had many chances to collaborate with the hearing dance community. That’s why Noisey and Smirnoff teamed him up with Donae’o and the dance crew Plague to help create a routine for the video. With its percussive bass “Mami No Like” was the perfect song to inspire Chris, who “feels music through vibrations by holding the speaker and letting the ‘thumping’ travel through [his] body”.
Wow! Chris sure is an amazing human being! Check him out at his website where he says, “Everyone can dance. It’s not about moves, it’s about feeling. Dance is the very core of who I am – all my experiences, trials and joys have their place in my choreography. It’s about capturing the emotion of the moment in a unique and physical flow of tension and release to create something meaningful and positive.”
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