Empowering People With Disabilities Through Theater

Child in wheelchair performing on stage.

About Penguin Project

Throughout the year, theaters across the country come alive with something truly extraordinary. Children, teens, and adults take the stage to perform beloved Broadway musicals with a twist that changes everything. Every role is performed by artists with disabilities, partnered with peer mentors who are with them every step of the way. Together, they rehearse for months and then shine under the lights, proving that talent, friendship, and the human spirit know no bounds.

I knew lives would be changed, I just didn't realize that life would be mine.
Mentor, Penguin Project Peoria

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Our Founder

"Dr. Andy" is the founder and director of the Penguin Project. He is Professor Emeritus of Clinical Pediatrics and the former Head of the Division of Child Development at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria. He has been the primary medical specialist in central Illinois involved in the diagnosis and treatment of children with disabilities for over 35 years.

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Picture of Dr. Andy, founder of the Penguin Project

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