The students of the Foundation for the Training and Protection of Mentally Handicapped Children (ZİÇEV) in northwestern Turkey's Tekirdağ province are trying to create awareness about disabled people and break the stigma surrounding them with musicals and plays.

Four of the students with learning disabilities, autism or Down syndrome have been touring Turkey for the past two years as part of the "Unhindered Awareness Tour" ("Engelsiz Farkındalık Turnesi") and have put on 30 shows so far. They also take the stage every Dec. 3 and March 21 to mark the International Day of Disabled Persons and World Down Syndrome Day, respectively.

Yaşar Güneş, the director of Ziçev Tekirdağ, said that such initiatives were important for the social integration and development of children as well as erasing societal prejudices.

"With new-found confidence, the disabled kids also see that they aren't different from the rest and can achieve anything they set their minds to," he said.