For the past 2 years, J. M. Tolani has been a weekly attendee of a pioneering dance class for Parkinson disease (PD) patients in Brooklyn. Tolani—who was diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease 8 years ago—is a self-proclaimed devotee of the Dance for PD® program, a collaboration between the acclaimed Mark Morris Dance Group and a Parkinson disease support group in Brooklyn.
“If I had a way I would do it 8 hours a day, 7 days a week, honestly,” the 57-year-old said of the classes, which employ movement, choreography, and music to promote motor function.