Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time lead role to be played by autistic actor

For the first time in the history of theatre, an autistic character will be played by an autistic man. Mikey Rowe is set to play the lead character in the theatrical adaptation of Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time in two off-Broadway productions.

Speaking to Salon , Mikey Rowe said that he felt it was an honour to represent the autistic and disability community on platforms like the Indiana Repertory Theater and Syracuse Stage. He added, “Particularly playing this role is such an honor because there’s a lot of misinformation and stereotypes around autism. And 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.”

Rowe also opened up about the difficulties that he faces as an autistic actor. He explained that while he is comfortable on stage with his co-actors, opening up and maintaining eye contact with fellow actors can be difficult during an audition, where he does not know anybody.

Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is a best-selling mystery novel written by Mark Haddon. It centers on Christopher John Francis Boone, a 15-year-old autistic boy who is first accused of killing his neighbour’s dog and later investigates this same murder.