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As an actor and disability rights advocate, Gregg Mozgala believes in the transformative power of theater.

Mozgala made his theatrical debut with a junior high monologue from Julius Caesar, and remembers the moment he first caught the theater bug.

“I have cerebral palsy, and when I was younger my leg would shake like a jackhammer when I became nervous,” he told . “But embodying this character, I had control of my audience for the first time.”

Growing up in a family where sports were central, Mozgala charted his own course through theater instead, studying at Boston University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts.

After college, Mozgala moved to New York in pursuit of that elusive big city break. After being denied an opportunity to audition for a role because of his disability, he became determined to prove that actors with disabilities are an incredible asset to any ensemble.

“As an actor you’re told to bring your full self to everything you do. For decades, I was denying an essential part of my humanity on stage. That's why I started creating work for myself and others in my community,” Mozgala says.

After founding his theater company, , dedicated to the production of works that explore the disabled experience, Mozgala set to work commissioning his first play. He delivered a memorable performance of “John” in and went on to develop “” which premiered with outstanding reception and propelled Mozgala to national stardom.

“I have never seen myself on stage until I was on it and other disabled actors say that as well. But there is room. Our stories should be reflected on American stages and everywhere else,” he told in 2018.

Mozgala has an unmistakable knack for infusing canonical works that already feature themes around disability – Oedipus, Richard III, The Elephant Man, and others – with a contemporary twist. Empowered with a crew of talented actors, administrations designers, Mozgala will stop at nothing to create more employment opportunities for disabled people in the theater world.