We’re looking forward to introducing you to Mary Elizabeth Lenahan MS. OT. Check out our conversation below.
Mary Elizabeth, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
Dance Express is a tiny, non-profit (aka social profit) dance company for persons with and without disabilities. One of the first misunderstandings is that dance is for children. Although we include children in some of our programs and productions, the core dance troupe is composed of persons over 16 and most are over 21, therefore adults. Another misunderstanding is that people with disabilities are outside the parameters of the arts and business worlds. When Dance Express was first founded in 1989, inclusion in the arts and culture was a relatively new concept. The Americans with Disabilities Act was implemented as a civil rights law in 1990. Even today, in 2025, despite good will and open hearts, we still have polarities. People with disabilities succeed when communities choose to be inclusive. Dancers with Dance Express are expressing themselves through the art of dance; we are dance artists! And proud in 2025 to be named a Legend of Dance in Colorado.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am what I call a “second-generation” immigrant to the United States. My mother’s family immigrated from Poland and my father’s family from Ireland. Both were born in New York. Essentially, in upstate New York where I am from, social dancing and dance parties were a norm. Once I moved to Colorado, I wanted to pursue my dream of having a dance company for persons with disabilities. Fortunately, this happened! Dance Express was founded in 1989 in Fort Collins, Colorado. The company/non-profit Dance Express serves the community through dance training, performances, workshops, and community outreach centered on persons with disabilities, such as Down syndrome and other cognitive delays. Dancers in the company are over 16. Workshops serve people as young as five years old and even older than 100 years old and are offered in schools and community centers. Founded for the joy of dance, Dance Express enhances the lives of the participants as well as their families, friends, classmates, and associates. In our major productions, Dance Express collaborates with other dance companies or with school groups.
The Mission and Vision of Dance Express could be considered a brand. As an inclusive dance company for persons with and without disabilities, Dance Express celebrates diverse dance experiences in northern Colorado. Based in Fort Collins, Dance Express improves people’s lives through creative dance experiences.
In 2025, the Dance Archive at the University of Denver named Dance Express a Legend of Dance for making an outstanding contribution to dance in Colorado. As part of being a Legend of Dance, an oral history has been recorded and this oral history of Dance Express is available online in DU’s digital repository after October 19th, 2025. A shortened version will be shared at the recognition ceremony October 19th at Cleo Parker Robinson Dance to honor the 2025 Legends of Dance. Each year the Dance Archive and its board name five annual Legends of Dance and have done so since 2004. In a way, Dance Express could be the 101st Legend in Colorado.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
I clearly remember the feeling of accomplishment and independence of being a able to climb the cherry tree in our front yard. I knew I was strong and capable and “above” the ground . And when our mother came outside and saw not only me, but also my sister and two brothers up there, her surprise and wonder as she looked up at us is a moment not soon forgotten.
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
The fear of success might actually be one of my biggest stumbling blocks. With too much success, people pay too much attention to you. I must be shy! Although it might be better stated, that I am a private person. If we define success as fame and fortune, those are the fear-factors, primarily because of the responsibility attached to those concepts. When I see how society routinely invades people’s personal space, I am concerned. And, I do question the excessive emphasis on money as the only reason to work.
A recent study demonstrated that rewarding perseverance over rewarding achievement and capacity was a better measure of success and personal improvement. Since I believe in myself and in the good I can achieve, I persevere. In founding a non-profit, wearing the multiple hats of an entrepreneur in the arts world, creating dance and dance theatre productions for persons with and without disabilities, and balancing the strategic, financial, and social challenges and requirements for our 501(c)(3), I have learned much and I continue with our mission of improving lives through dance.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
I believe we are here for a purpose. Defining that and explaining who each of us is and why we are here and for what purpose comprises our life work.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
In most respects, I believe I am doing what I was born to do. Serendipitously, my sister Theresa was born into our family with Down syndrome. Knowing her and loving her, I pursued studies to found Dance Express. Thanks to Down syndrome, Theresa brought music to life and had an innate rhythm that not everyone possesses.
Although I might not have originally recognized where my path was going, now after over 30 years of being the artistic and executive director of Dance Express in Fort Collins, Colorado, I can say this was the path I was born to pursue. Again, at the risk of being repetitive, in 2025, Dance Express and I have been named a Legend of Dance in Colorado. That could be a defining moment in a life’s work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://danceexpressfc.com/
- Instagram: dance_expressfc
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danceexpress/
- Twitter: DanceFC
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DanceExpressFoCo/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@DanceExpressFC
- Other: Alignable: https://www.alignable.com/fort-collins-co/dance-express
Image Credits
Photo of Theresa Lenahan, Mary Elizabeth Lenahan’s sister, taken by Mary Elizabeth in Poudre Canyon.
Black and white group at Every Body Dance performance in Boulder, photo by Fritz Penning.
Single dancer extending arms and seated, taken by Mary Elizabeth at Club Tico in Fort Collins.
Single dancer in the light, photo by Geren Images, at Club Tico in Fort Collins.
Dance Express on stage at Lincoln Center Magnolia Theatre: large group and small group in yellow, photos courtesy of Jim
