COLCHESTER, Vt. (WCAX) – A new play at St. Michael’s College, shines a spotlight on the lived experiences of people with disabilities.
Sadie chamberlain spent two years writing and workshopping an original play, “A Taste of Freedom.”
“It didn’t really come from a desire to make art, it came from a desire to not explode, emotionally,” Chamberlain said.
Now she’s starring in it. The play draws on her experiences and emotions as a person with cerebral palsy.
It centers on the Maiden and the Siren, who are two halves of one person. The Maiden is physically challenged, while the Siren is fully abled.
“What the Siren represents is kind of anything that you can’t express as a disabled person that is socially appropriate,” Chamberlain said. “All the jealousy you might have, the wish you might be quicker, the wish you might be taken seriously.”
Relying on metaphor, rather than autobiographical details, Chamberlain hopes this makes it more impactful to audiences.
Her professor Peter Harrigan helped her refine the script and get the play on stage.
“It’s not Sadie’s job to educate us all about ableism and disabilities in particular, but she’s willing to in a way that kind of welcomes people,” Harrigan said.
This is only the second time since 1962, that a student-written play has been the major theater production of the semester.
“I can’t even describe what it means. It’s so meaningful that my story as a disabled person can reach people of all abilities, and the fact that St. Michael’s took a chance on that is just extraordinary,” Chamberlain said.
Beyond just increasing representation of disabled people, Harrigan also points to the power of theater to reach across divides.
“In our country right now, we have an empathy shortage where people don’t necessarily understand other people’s point of view. But this is a wonderful sort of antidote to that,” Harrigan said.
After Chamberlain graduates next year, she hopes to get her play published and plans to continue her advocacy for disabled people working in the arts.