‘I love what I do and my health will never stop me’: inspirational story behind D Dance Academy

Through years of health struggles Dom Tulleken has lost the support of some of the most important people in his life, but one community has supported him no matter what. Experiencing seizures on a daily basis he said nothing will stop him from teaching people to dance.

Medically, Corey White is one in 24,000 but to many people he is one in a million.

Born with an incredibly rare neurological condition called Glut1 Deficiency Syndrome, Mr White is in wheelchair and experiences frequent seizures but he doesn’t let that get in the way of being a performer.

Three years ago he joined Toowoomba D Dance Academy, a program that teaches dancing to people with different abilities.

Mr White said D Dance Academy is somewhere he feels like he fits in and he loves making audiences smile.

“It makes me really happy, to bring joy to other people around me,” he said.

Dom Tulleken, Corey White (far right) and dancers at D Dance Academy Toowoomba.

D Dance Academy was started by Dom Tulleken in 2021 after he went through a series of struggles with his health.

After being misdiagnosed for five years Mr Tulleken was diagnosed with general dystonia when he was 25.

He began botox treatment for the condition but unfortunately it triggered a rare dormant gene which caused him to start having mini strokes.

“I’m only number two in the world to have this rare gene and all they know is that it’s disease causing,” he said.

Dom Tulleken ahead of International Day Against LGBTQIA+ Discrimination, Wednesday, May 15, 2024. Picture: Kevin Farmer

About four years ago he had three mini strokes in the same day and was paralysed from the shoulders down for more than two years, and that’s when he came up with the concept of D Dance Academy.

“When I finally started getting movement, then in one arm, then the other arm and that’s when I created an ABN,” he said.

“I wanted to teach people of all disabilities to be able to dance.

“People look down upon people with disabilities. They think they’re not capable of much and I want to be able to prove that they’re wrong.”

Despite Mr Tulleken continuing to have seizures on a daily basis, he doesn’t let it stop him.

“I go out of class and then have a seizure and then rush back into class and continue teaching,” he said.

“After my classes I end up back in my wheelchair because my body reverts back to being paralysed.

“I love what I do and my health will never stop me from running my academy.”

Dom Tulleken and dancers at D Dance Academy Toowoomba.

Mr Tulleken shows up for his students but they have also showed up for him at a time when his family didn’t.

“Corey has seen me go through my transition and he’s also seen me go through some of my relapses as well,” he said.

“I’ve always known who I am and the only reason I hadn’t come out is because I’ve had troubles with my own family, but I’m actually a trans man.”

He was worried about how his students would react to the news.

“I said ‘my voice will change, my face will change, you’ll notice I’ll end up getting more hairy, but I am the same person. I’m still going to be Dom,” Mr Tulleken said.

“I never lost any of them, I got so much love and affection from all of them.”

Last week D Dance Academy performed at a Toowoomba retirement village for the first time, bringing residents at Tricare the performance of a lifetime.

“So many people haven’t seen performances like ours before, so for them to see people with disabilities out there performing and doing cultural dancing, they absolutely loved it,” Mr Tulleken said.

D Dance Academy has hopes to do regular performances at retirement homes and special needs schools.

Find out more about D Dance Academy here.