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Success
Stories-Children
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A Young Girl Discovers Her
Voice Through Theatre & Peer Support
Jessica came to the Girls Inc. Cultural Arts program, sponsored in part
through United Way of Santa Barbara County, as a soft-spoken, shy first
grader who had limited use of the English language. She is wheelchair
bound, and was initially reluctant to join the Theatre Petite program as
she was afraid her disability would "get in the way." Her peers were the
first to lift Jessica's wheelchair on stage, and they also made sure
that she did not accidentally roll off the edge. The other girls in her
class also assured Jessica that she didn't need to speak if she didn't
want to. In fact, they all wrote a script that was tailored to her
needs.
For her first production, Jessica was a fairy queen in a
beautiful gown that completely disguised her wheelchair to appear as if
she were floating. Because Jessica wasn't ready to "speak out," the
script called for her to whisper to her maid, who in turn made the
queen's wishes heard. Jessica was the first to sign up for the next
session of Theatre Petite, and this time she chose to play a character
who spoke Spanish and used a walker (rather than her wheelchair). When
deciding upon a character to portray for Girls Inc.'s annual "Women in
History" production, Jessica choose Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Jessica had
gone through extensive surgery for her disability and was able to walk
on stage for the first time. It was a truly remarkable moment for
everyone.
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