October 5, 2012 - Cedar Rapids, Iowa - Through a collaboration between Theatre Cedar Rapids and The Arc, the acclaimed documentary Wretches and Jabberers will be presented at TCR, 102 3rd St. SE, at 5:30pm on Tuesday, October 16. The event is free and open to the public. The film will be followed by a panel discussion to be held in the Linge Lounge at the theatre.
Directed by Oscar winner and twice Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Geraldine Wurzburg, the 90-minute film Wretches and Jabberers chronicles the world travels of disability rights advocates, Tracy Thresher and Larry Bissonnette, each of whom learned to break through their world of autism by learning to type as adults. Tracy, Larry, and their support team, Harvey Lavoy and Pascal Cheng, visit Sri Lanka, Japan, and Finland, giving interviews and presentations and learning about the lives of people with autism in these countries. The film's portrayal of these travels, which the duo named The World Intelligence Magnified Tour, challenges attitudes about the intelligence and abilities of people with autism.
The panel discussion following the film will feature co-presidents of the East Central Iowa Autism Society, Jennifer Bohn and Cindy Dircks, each of whom parent a child on the autism spectrum. The panel will also include two speech-language pathologists, Liz Delasandro with the Wendell Johnson Speech Clinic at the University of Iowa, and Jenn Haeger with Virginia Gay Hospital in Vinton. The panelists will share their experiences working with individuals on the autism spectrum, with a question and answer session to follow.
For more information go to www.theatrecr.org or call the TCR box office at 319-366-8591. This is a free event, and open to the public.
