I don't know where you got this term. I don't know of any exercise called ROPE DANCE in the Chekhov teachings or any other acting method. It is possible it comes from a particular teacher's improvisation teaching games. We do not do this in our workshops. The only thing I am aware of is rope dancing as an art form, like aerial silks, where one climbs up the rope and "dances" up on the rope. It is quite beautiful to watch.
BUT you are asking a question about imagination, so I will answer that.
The answer is YES.  In our workshops, when you ask a question of THIS THING OR THAT THING, the answer is YES. Both are possible. If you have a rope, dance with it. Imagine it as anything you want. It can be a mate or an animal or a rope you want to dance with. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A ROPE, then imagine the rope. You can do ANYTHING when you use your imagination and that is the great power of imagination. There are NO limits. BUT remember that the audience or class or teacher cannot see what you are imagining. They only see your physical action with whatever you are imagining.
Michael Chekhov was never against doing real things with real people in real circumstances. BUT he wants you to come at those things through your imagination first, because there is so much more to act within your imagination than there is in the physical world. So you are completely unlimited in your acting choices and can create your performance in many, many ways. You can even do the same performance every night or in multiple camera takes and imagine them in different ways each time. And your performance will change each time in subtle, more interesting ways.
So always begin with imagination, then add reality. Imagine a rope dance in as many ways as you can and, then, when you actually have a rope, IF you ever have a rope, then your dance will be more creative and interesting to the audience.