The Penguin Project helps Sauk Valley youths soar onstage

STERLING – A national nonprofit organization is giving children and young adults with disabilities a chance to shine on the local stage.

The Penguin Project offers individuals ages 10 to 23 with developmental, neurological, intellectual and learning disabilities the opportunity to participate in community theater by pairing them with “peer mentors,” or volunteers their age who work alongside them through rehearsals and the final performance.

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JB Roe (right), playing Charlie in “Willy Wonka Jr.,” rehearses with mentor Joe Prior on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, for the Penguin Project of the Sauk Valley’s rendition of the popular musical. (Alex T. Paschal)

Sauk Valley chapter program director Dawn Arndt said watching the performers and their mentors work together is truly magical.

“Our actors are the stars, and our peer mentors are the heart,” Arndt said. “They help them with the blocking, learning the choreography, going through the audition process, learning their lines, and then they just fade into the background and allow their star to shine.”

Dr. Andrew Morgan of Peoria established the Penguin Project in 2004. Morgan is a retired professor of clinical pediatrics and former head of child development at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Peoria, with more than 35 years as the main medical specialist in central Illinois for diagnosing and treating children with disabilities. He also has been involved in community theater as a performer and director for more than 30 years.

Morgan wanted to combine his medical expertise with his passion for the performing arts to give children and young adults with developmental disabilities the chance to shine onstage in local plays and musicals. His passion has expanded the project to more than 50 chapters nationwide.

Assistant music director Lisa Carlson said the way the program has helped her son is nothing short of “amazing.”

“My son, Joe, he can talk, but he speaks a lot in scripts and has a lot of issues with just saying things,” Carlson said. “This is his fourth show. In the beginning, he wouldn’t say anything to anybody here. Now, he’s performing his parts and singing. I’ve seen such a change in him, and it’s amazing.”

Performers and their peer mentors meet every Tuesday and Thursday evening at the Northside Baptist Church gym in Dixon for almost four months to rehearse for the final performance in November. This year, the Sauk Valley chapter will be performing “Willy Wonka Jr.” from Nov. 8 to 10 at the Sterling Centennial Auditorium, 19 E. Miller Road, Sterling.

JB Roe is the 12-year-old actor from Franklin Grove who will be playing the part of Charlie Bucket in this year’s performance. This is his fifth time acting in the project. Joe Prior of Franklin Grove has been Roe’s peer mentor the past two years. He encourages others to cast aside their stage fright and get involved.

“My favorite part is when you finish the show, and then you meet all of your fans,” Prior said. “It’s very a proud experience. It’s like if you defeated a ferocious monster in front of a live crowd.

“I admit, it seems a little daunting at first. But once you come in here and you get to meet people, it’s not scary at all. Just try it – you’ll enjoy it.”

Arndt, who also is an assistant director at the Woodlawn Arts Academy in Sterling, helped establish the Sauk Valley chapter of the Penguin Project in 2019 after her daughter read a news article about the Penguin’s Quad City chapter.

“She said, ‘Mom, you need to do this,’” Arndt said. “I told her, ‘I know nothing about this kind of stuff.’ But she kept hounding me for nearly three weeks and, finally, I called my friend Natalie Gordon, who helped me found the Sauk Valley chapter.”

All project staff members are volunteers from the community who donate their time to help coordinate and create productions once a year.

“I wish we could do more, but that’s asking a lot from people who already commit a good deal of their time to help,” Arndt said. “Plus, each show costs us about $8,000 to $10,000. That’s a lot of money to raise.”

Shows are funded through private donations and the volunteers’ fundraising efforts. The Sauk Valley chapter also receives support from its partners, the Woodlawn Arts Academy and the Sterling and Dixon Kiwanis clubs.

“We just finished two of our major fundraisers with McDonald’s and Culver’s,” Arndt said. “The community was amazing, and they really came out for us. Now, we have almost all of our budget for next year, which is really exciting.”

Arndt can enroll up to 25 performers per show. They share the stage with their peer mentors and are chosen on a first-come, first-served basis.

“Enrollment typically opens in May through our website,” Arndt said. “Every actor goes on a waiting list, and as soon as we have a meeting or a mentor, we will pull them off. We try to keep it as fair as possible.”

For more information, contact Arndt at dawn.ppsv@gmail.com or 608-931-3253. Peer mentors should be between the ages of 13 and 23 and be available for most rehearsals.