MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WTVF) — There's an organization that works to let all kids know what it's like to perform on stage. However, the group has hit a problem, and they need your help.
Tuesday was a rehearsal night. A group of kids ran into the room for a first run-through of the choreography for a song.
Jamie Storvik is the director for the Penguin Project's production of The Little Mermaid Jr.
"The Penguin Project is a nationwide organization," Jamie said. "We have children with autism, we have children with spina bifida, ADHD, down syndrome, neurological disorders."
NewsChannel 5 saw the program in action last year in their production of Peter Pan Jr. The way this works in the Penguin Project is each actor is paired with a volunteer peer mentor. They perform a role together.
"We provide an opportunity for children with special needs to be able to perform in their own Broadway Jr. musical," Jamie said.
Tuesday night, everything was coming along great, except the only place they had to rehearse was in the choreographer's house. They're grateful for that, but it's not ideal.
"It worked tonight because we only had eight kids," Jamie said. "If we were rehearsing one of the bigger numbers like Under the Sea or Kiss the Girl, we do not have that kind of space in the living room."
An even bigger problem is right now, they don't have a stage to perform their show.
"We had a performance space reserved, and we lost it," Jamie said. "At this late stage, a lot of the traditional venues are booked with other things they have going on."
The show's scheduled to perform on April 26, 27, and 28, Friday and Saturday night shows and a Sunday matinee. Jamie is hoping someone will have a space to offer up for those days.
"If I have to go out and build the theater out of toothpicks, I will," Jamie said. "We will find a space for these kids one way or the other. It'd be a shame for the kids to miss out on doing this just because we couldn't find a place for them."
If you know of spaces the Penguin Project can use for their rehearsals and shows in April, you can contact Jamie at jstorvik@mtctheatre.com.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
