He told us we might need a box of Kleenex.
And when the young girl on the screen, a “peer mentor” to children with developmental disabilities, said she knew The Penguin Project would change lives — she just didn’t know it would be hers — we did need those tissues.
Late Friday afternoon, a group of local citizens interested in the performing arts and children with special needs, gathered at the South Arkansas Arts Center to hear about a new program that will begin in El Dorado in the next few weeks — The Penguin Project.
Founder and organizer of the project, Dr. Andrew Morgan, of Peoria, Ill., came and presented the program in El Dorado and explained that it was started in 2004, because of his love for the theatre and his love for children – he is a pediatrician in Peoria. He received his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and has been in practice for over 30 years.
“Dr. Andy” and his wife, Kathy, are the founders and directors of The Penguin Project. He is a professor of clinical pediatrics, the medical director of the Regional Diagnostic Center in Peoria and primary medical specialist in Central Illinois involved in the diagnosis and treatment of children with disabilities. He is also the medical director of Easter Seals of Central Illinois and medical director of Pediatric Developmental Rehabilitation at the Children’s Hospital of Illinois.
Morgan has been actively involved in community theater for over 30 years as a director and as a performer. His directing credits include “The King and I,” “Gypsy,” “Bye Bye Birdie,” “Crazy for You” and most recently “Thoroughly Modern Millie.” He lists his favorite roles as Atticus Finch in “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Tevye in “Fiddler on the Roof.”
He created The Penguin Project to combine his professional expertise with his passion for theater to give children with disabilities an opportunity to experience the performing arts.
The Penguin Project strives to demonstrate that individuals with special needs are fully capable of participating in community activities with the same dedication and enthusiasm as others, if given opportunity and support. In addition to providing recreational opportunities for children with special needs, The Penguin Project also enhances social interaction, communication skills, assertiveness and self-esteem.
The project is open to any individual age 10 to 21 with a developmental disability and each child on the stage has a mentor throughout the rehearsals and productions. Children with cognitive, learning, motor, hearing and visual impairments, genetic disorders and neurological disorders are all encouraged to participate.
Beth James Burns, director of the South Arkansas Arts Center, said in the next few weeks, parents of children with developmental displays will be invited to attend an informational meeting about the project — El Dorado’s first The Penguin Project production – “Aladdin’s Lamp,” which will be directed by Gary Hall and Darren Riley. Production dates are set for Feb. 17, 18 and 19, 2017. “The Simmons Foundation has graciously given us the seed money for this project and have guided us through the grant process,” she said.
Morgan said the theatre in Peoria where The Penguin Project actors
perform seats over 1,000 people and the children play to a sold-out crowd every night. “Believe me, this is a money-making project,” he said. “It takes a village to put this on and we (Dr. Andy and Kathy and other members of the production team) will be coming here six or seven times a year to help with the infrastructure.
“Mentors are the glue that hold this project together,” he said, showing several videos of children and their mentors on stage, during some of the productions performed by the group over the years, such as “Annie Jr.,” “Seussical Jr.,” “Grease-School Version,” “Thoroughly Modern Millie Jr.,” “High School Musical 2” and “The Little Mermaid.”
“The mentors are very giving people – they are friends – some are siblings – to the characters on stage. They are costumed the same and learn all the lines. Without the mentors, this project wouldn’t work,” Morgan said. “We put on a quality performance.”
Morgan showed one young girl in a performance whose mother said when she was born she was a one-pound preemie and doctors said she would most likely never walk, never talk. But she defied those odds and “has been our leading lady for multiple shows,” the doctor said. Another young boy with down syndrome cannot read and “his parents fed him the lines. He was amazing and the whole production was unbelievable,” Morgan smiled.
Many children with special needs “don’t have friends,” Morgan said, explaining that the program has created friendships among the children with disabilities, their mentors and others who work in the production. “The kids don’t have disabilities when they are on the stage. The growth of the mentors and characters, along with family involvement, creates a social network of community involvement.”
Children participating in a production spend four months rehearsing, usually twice a week and artists and their mentors with lines may rehearse up to two additional times a week. There is no formal audition process – they are assigned by the production staff, based on their observations during the group rehearsals. Morgan said rehearsals may increase up to five times a week closer to the production dates.
Another young actor Morgan showed on the screen was a young boy who became very angry when he attended school, because he was treated terribly by some of the other children. “He was in the sixth grade and told his mother he wanted to kill himself and be with Jesus. Chris has friends now and he’s once again a happy child. Mentors also teach other children how and why they should accept others with developmental disabilities,” Morgan said. He said the mother said, “My heart rejoices. My penguin has flown and he now realizes that not all people are mean.”
After parents encouraged Dr. Andy and Kathy to “take this on the road,” The Penguin Project now operates in 17 sites in 11 states. “It will transform the lives of those involved,” he said. Children who rarely spoke before becoming a part of a Penguin production, are now singing solos and those who were too shy to come on stage at first – didn’t want to leave after they experienced the project.
Morgan explained that the name for the project was determined by the unique characteristics of penguins. “They are extremely playful and curious and work well together. More importantly, they have a ‘disability,’ that distinguishes them from other birds – they can’t fly.
“Our penguins may not be able to fly, but that does not prevent their spirits from soaring,” Morgan said. “These are incredible kids with incredible talents.”
Concluding his presentation to El Dorado residents, Morgan said, “You are now a Penguin Project.”