WINTER 2008 -2009 |  Volume 5 : Issue 1

AWB Ushers in “A Whole New World”

This past July, the actors of Acting Without Boundaries (AWB) brought the musical “Aladdin” to the ESF campers at The Haverford School.  AWB is a unique year-round theater program for children, teens, and young adults with physical disabilities. The goal of the program is to provide young people from the disabled community with the opportunity to pursue their love of acting and performing, while at the same time building their self-confidence and fostering an enhanced belief in themselves and their abilities. This year was a very special one for AWB as it marked the 5th Anniversary.

For the past two years AWB has done a week-long theatre workshop in the summer, which includes a performance for the ESF campers! The summer workshop is extremely beneficial for the AWB actors in preparation for their annual performance in September at Saint Joseph’s University. This year was extra-special for the ESF campers as they were also performing “Aladdin Jr.” the following week, so they could get a preview of what was to come!

The campers and ESF Team members who saw the performance were exposed to a “Whole New World” as the actors with physical disabilities showed their amazing acting and singing abilities. Spectators may have noticed the wheelchairs and walkers in the beginning of the play but as the performance went on, all they saw was how amazing the actors were. One camp parent told me that her daughter was so excited to meet “Jasmine” after the show and was raving about how amazing the show was. AWB strives to show people that despite one’s disabilities, our Actors have many other abilities to share with the world!