When a baby is born with Down syndrome, family members probably will not expect that this child will grow up to be an actor or actress - but later on they might suspect that the acting gene is found on chromosome 21.
I remember how excited I was when a casting call for actors with Down syndrome went out for the movie "Kids Like These" from Emily Kingsley, writer, and the mother of Jason Kingsley, who memorized many pages of dialog and delivered them so well in his appearance on the popular 1980s television show "The Fall Guy. "
And I was nearly brought to tears one day a year or so later when a bank clerk looked down at my young son and said, "Does he have Down syndrome? I saw that movie last night. It just means it takes him longer to learn things, right?"
Since then, we have seen a television series that included a character with Down syndrome, featuring Chris Burke in its fine ensemble of actors. Belgian actor Pascal Duquenne was recognized at Cannes, and other children and young adults have played roles in popular movies and appeared in many television series.
My son is among a legion of actors with DS in community theater productions in our state, and there are actors and actresses with Down syndrome who prove themselves in performances throughout the country and around the world. I know of one local baby with DS who made his acting debut in a church nativity pageant. Who knows where that path will lead?
Many teens and young adults who balk at articulation speech therapy exercises are ready and willing to participate when a therapist or volunteer offers the opportunity to 'run lines' with them. Just like their mainstream peers, individuals with Down syndrome learn voice control and other skills that are useful off the stage, too.
There is an article on the National Down Syndrome Society's website with advice for thespians with DS who want to know more about how to improve their natural abilities, express their talents, and increase their chances at landing an audition and a role.
Since acting is a career where most professionals are out of work, between jobs, and have not found their first break into show business, people with Down syndrome are like other actors who find other jobs to keep them going between performances. Many work on their acting skills in community theater productions and in training programs specifically for individuals with disabilities.
Being onstage seems to turn on a light inside some people - and this might be just what makes an actor stand out from the crowd. What I have admired most about the actors and actresses with DS I have seen is that they carry on in their roles as they were written, often having to hide their own accomplishments and abilities underneath the role the writer wants to present.
Accurate portrayal of an 'average' person with DS or not, every role that calls for a person with Down syndrome is a job for an actor or actress. There is such diversity among people with Down syndrome, I have great hope that writers will someday realize how many dimensions they have to explore in their characters.
Until then, I get a kick out of watching performers with DS take the stage and manage their scenes. Sometimes I think about the mom of a babe in arms who is studying the screen as intently as I once did, wondering if her baby will grow up to be more than she ever imagined when she first heard that diagnosis.
Children with Disabilities in Movies, Ads and Television
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art54743.asp
Art and Self Expression for Children with Special Needs
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art17513.asp
Music Education - Every Voice Heard
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art46397.asp
Books on acting and auditioning can be found at local libraries, bookstores, and online booksellers like Amazon.com -
Acting and Performance Arts
Training for Young Actors
Browse Amazon.com for Comfy, Stylish Shoes
and SandalsEverybody is enjoying Brett Banford's appearance on "So You Think You Can Dance" now available on YouTube at http://youtube.com/watch?v=aMuZdT9XaMg# and at
PatriciaBauer.com - Utah man 'represents' for people with disabilities in dance contest
http://www.patriciaebauer.com/2008/05/29/utah-man-represents-for-people-with-disabilities-in-dance-contest/#more-2204
L. A. Times April 7, 2008 - Pictured: Actors Chris Burke and Michael Rankin
Hollywood's doors opening for actors with disabilities
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-acting7apr07,0,5237445,full.story
Down Syndrome in Arts and Media - Talent, Referrals, Consultation, Advocacy
http://www.dsiam.org
One Woman Never Takes ‘No’ for an Answer as She Fights for Rights of Performers with Disabilities
Pam Vetter interviews Gail Williamson about rights of performers with Down syndrome and other disabilities to represent themselves in commercials, movies and television shows
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/48379
New Civil Rights Movement: Passionate Crusade for Inclusion of People with Disabilities
Pam Vetter interviews Emily Kingsley about including people with disabilities in commercials, movies and television shows
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=47129
An Actor's Life for Me by Ewan Marshall ~ Ouch! BBC Article February 2008
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ouch/closeup/acting.shtml
My Lovely Son, the Hollywood Star
Max Lewis - Notes on a Scandal
http://www.dailymail.co.uk
Children Like Grace - Down Syndrome - Four Generations Baby on EastEnders TV Show
http://www.guardian.co.uk/medicine/story/0,,2183066,00.html
a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?JSESSIONID=F6w0dS2TxtFRWTZQN7V1HPF7pyCNmX7z4XpNFJpsk4WZlrTq2T6d!558491484&&rid=8518">Max Lewis - Notes on a Scandal
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com
Film Clip Max Lewis - Notes on a Scandal
http://www.foxsearchlight.com/NOAS
Pascal Duquenne - The Eighth Day - Belgium Award Winner at Cannes - 1999
Chris Burke
Life Goes On - Chris Burke
So You Want to be An Actor and You Were Born with Down SyndromeActor
Jason Kingsley - Sesame Street and The Fall Guy
Blair Williamson - My Antonia and ER
Louise Brown - ER
KC Clarizio - Life Goes On and Include Us
Costumes for Children with Special Needs
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art36415.asp
Australia and UK:
" The Music in Me " is an international award-winning documentary about the Sydney dance troupe the Merry Makers, all of whom have intellectual or multiple disabilities. Lots of people with Down syndrome belong to Merry Makers. It will be screened across Australia a special on Andrew Denton's " Enough Rope " on Monday 9th June 2008, 9.35 pm, on ABC1.
Jason Kingsley and Emily Perl Kingsley
http://www.journeyofhearts.org/jofh/kirstimd/kingsley.htm
Jason and Emily Kingsley - Vanity License Plates
http://www.lcns2rom.com/raflpriz_06.htm">Emily and Jason Kingsley - Vanity Plates page 2
Montauk Sun article about Vanity License Plates
Video of the WNBC Story about Emily Kingsley's Car and Vanity Plates
video.wnbc.com/player/?id=232648
AID=/20080212/COLUMNIST/802120351/1010/columnist08
Chris Burke - USA
Paula Werneck, Brazil - soap operas and tv series; movie "Adolescent"
Melissa Riggio Made a Difference
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art56423.asp
Disability World - Brazil
Dionysus Theatre - Houston
Yellow Brick Road documentary - ANCHOR Acting Troupe (Answering the Needs of Citizens with Handicaps through Organized Recreation)
Sprout Film Festival - New York
Media Access Awards Presented by the California Governor's Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities - Call for Nominations
Media Access Awards - Call for Nominations
Press Release:
For 22 years, the Media Access Awards have honored the entertainment and media industries for hiring and accurately portraying people with disabilities.
Presented by the California Governor's Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities, the Media Access Awards recognize those who utilize the power of their medium to accelerate public awareness and acceptance and enhance employment opportunities for all people with disabilities.
You are invited to nominate those media productions, performances, and print materials that employ people with disabilities, cast people with disabilities in non-traditional roles, and accurately depict people with disabilities.
Baby with Down Syndrome Mother Interview
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