A ‘Dream’ Come True

In William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies, interfere in the lives of four mortals in love: Lysander loves Hermia, and Hermia loves Lysander.

Helena loves Demetrius, but Demetrius loves Hermia. Then, thanks to a love spell, Lysander falls in love with Helena, and predictable complications ensue.

There’s nothing predictable about the PALS production of the Shakespearean comedy on stage Thursday. Some actors will have readers to help make sure their lines are heard.

Other actors are nonverbal but will participate in “Pyramus and Thisbe,” the play within the play. And others will be perfect, having memorized their parts months ago.

All of those things might happen at any community theater, but PALS isn’t like any other community theater in Northwest Arkansas. The actors are clients of Life Styles, a Fayetteville nonprofit that serves adults with disabilities, and Performing Artists of Life Styles is one of the activities offered as part of the College For Living. Amy Beaver, a longtime actress herself, is the full-time drama instructor.

“I have three degrees in theater, so obviously that’s an interest, but in school, I was always sneaking off to take special education classes,” Beaver says. When she was offered the job at Life Styles a year ago, “I danced around my house. It was the greatest day of my life.”

PALS started with seven students and now has more than 50, says Lindsay Broshears, coordinator of the College For Living program, which offers classes inindependent living skills along with “electives” like drama.

“We always thought a drama program would go well with visual arts - which has been very successful, but a lot of folks wanted to express their creativity in a different format,” she says. “We’ve broken through another stereotype that folks like our clients can’t be on stage and be successful.”

Katie Kirkpatrick, 26, has been in plays since she was a child through the two years she attended NorthWest Arkansas Community College.

She is portraying Hermia, the human with the romantic problems, and Titania, queen of the fairies, in the PALS production.

Doing theater with other Life Styles clients has been a very different experience, she says.

“When you’re in high school, you’re doing this with the non-disabled, and they’re your friends, but they don’t really understand,” she says. “We understand we all have certain limitations.”

Kirkpatrick’s disability is “hidden,” she says. She has chronic pulmonary issues andattention deficit hyperactivity disorder. She also, she says proudly, has “the memory of an elephant” and had her lines memorized in short order.

Judging by the rehearsal, she knows everyone else’s lines, too.

What she wants everyone else to know, though, isn’t just that you can be “really smart” and still have disabilities. It’s that “we all need help with something, and people need to be more accepting of that.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it.”

Megan Bergston, also 26,plays Robin, one of the actors in “Pyramus and Thisbe,” the play within the play. She started attending College For Living just about a year ago and now lives in a Life Styles apartment. Although her conversational language is somewhat difficult to understand, she’s clear as a bell on stage, Broshears says.

“It’s been incredible to see that progress.”

Bergston says she’s nervous about the performance but, she adds, clapping her hands, she’s also excited. She’d like to do another play “later,” which comes as no surprise to Broshears.

“She’s often caught on stage singing and dancing when she’s not in a class!”

Beaver says that kind of enthusiasm makes directing the Life Styles actors a joy.

“It’s been so terrific for these students to have the full theater experience,” she says.

“People might assume we’d have so many challenges, but what we have are so many opportunities for creative expression.

“That’s the difference between what traditional community theaters do and what we do here.”