My name is Mickey Rowe. I am an actor a theatre director a father and a husband. I am also a
man with autism. You think those things don't go together? Let me show you that they do.Growing
up Mickey Rowe was told that he couldn't enter the mainstream world. He was iced out by
classmates and colleagues infantilized by well-meaning theatre directors barred from even
earning a minimum wage. Why? Because he is autistic.Fearlessly Different: An Autistic Actor's
Journey to Broadway's Biggest Stage is Mickey Rowe's story of growing up autistic and pushing
beyond the restrictions of a special education classroom to shine on Broadway. As an autistic
and legally blind person living in a society designed by and for non-disabled people it was
always made clear to Mickey the many things he was apparently incapable of doing. But Mickey
did them all anyway?and he succeeded because of not in spite of his autism. He became the
first autistic actor to play the lead role in the play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time landed the title role in the play Amadeus co-created the theatre philanthropy
company Arts on the Waterfront and founded the National Disability Theatre. Mickey faced
untold obstacles along the way but his story ends in triumph.Many people feel they are locked
out of the world of autism?that it's impossible to even begin to understand. In Fearlessly
Different Mickey guides readers to that world while also helping those with autism to feel
seen and understood. And he shows all people?autistic and non-autistic alike?that the things
that make us different are often our biggest strengths.
