The stage adaption of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime centers around a 15-year-old boy with autism trying to uncover the mystery of a the murder of a neighborhood dog. Productions of the show, including its run on Broadway and touring production, have previously featured non-autistic actors in the lead role. BA alum Mickey Rowe is changing that by being the first openly autistic actor to helm the play, in a production at Indiana Repertory Theatre and Syracuse Stage. Rowe has been a vocal advocate for representation of disabled people and neuro-diversity in the past, including having articles published in Playbill, Teen Vogue, and American Theatre magazine.
In one interview with Salon, Rowe says “Its such an honor to be representing the autistic and disability community at the beautiful and incredible Indiana Repertory Theatre and Syracuse Stage. Particularly playing this role is such an honor because there is a lot of misinformation and stereotypes around autism. All too often we learn about autism from non-autistic people instead of going straight to the source and learning about autism from autistic adults. So to get to be bestowed with the responsibility of representing my community on stage is such a beautiful and important and powerful responsibility. And I am beyond honored to get to take it on.”
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime runs Sep. 19 - Oct. 14 at Indiana Repertory Theatre and Oct. 25 - Nov. 12 at Syracuse Stage.