People with disabilities and medical conditions who want to explore their experiences through the medium of theater have long had a champion in drama therapist Lou Zoller.

For 35 years, Mr. Zoller has been a catalyst for theater projects created by people who have physical, emotional or intellectual challenges. His new project, "Diagnosis Is Not a Destiny," a collaboration with Braddock Carnegie Library and the theater arts program at Duquesne University, is under way.

"Diagnosis Is Not a Destiny" is the umbrella for a cluster of theater activities that will take place in Braddock over the next two years. An original, collaborative play will be staged for four weeks each summer in the community's Urban Garden. A national conference on "challenged theater" is scheduled for October at the library, and other theater offerings are planned.

A community meeting to introduce the project will run from 1 to 4 p.m. April 6 at the library. Auditions for this summer's play, "The Other Side of Wonderland," are scheduled for April 14 to 18 and April 21 to 25 at the library.

Individuals with any type of disability or medical condition are encouraged to audition or to volunteer for production tasks. The play has about 50 roles and 20 production jobs. Students from Duquesne's theater arts program will serve as mentors to the actors and production staff.

Mr. Zoller, 61, began working as a drama therapist in rehabilitation settings in the 1980s. He became interested in the field when he realized that people with health problems had few opportunities to participate in theater, even though many of their concerns merited exploration through this medium.

At Mercy Behavioral Health, he founded the Invisible Village Theatre Company with patients in treatment for mental illness and addiction. Participants collaborated on most aspects of original theater -- writing, acting, designing sets, choreography and dancing -- and presented their work on professional stages

Among the many sensitive topics the company addressed was teen suicide.

As a staff member at the former John J. Kane Hospital in Scott, he established Theater-on-Wheels, a program that dramatized issues faced by patients in long-term care.

"The Other Side of Wonderland" will plumb the experience of illness, disability and difference with edginess and honesty.

"Our Alice [in Wonderland] will not be wearing an old-fashioned blue and white dress," Mr. Zoller said. "She will be talk-back-ish, sassy."

In addition to giving voice to personal experience, the play will provide something that's common in theater productions -- a sense of community among participants.

On this topic, Mr. Zoller likes to quote playwright Neil Simon, who said that the joy of creating theater comes from the "journey of doing it together, as a team, as a family, as a life experience."

"This is what we seek to do," Mr. Zoller said.

That sense of community also extends to the project's relationship with the borough, Mr. Zoller said, adding that Braddock's young and energetic mayor, John Fetterman, is committed to the project.

"Mayor Fetterman wants to reinvent Braddock," Mr. Zoller said. "He's trying to overcome challenges, and so are the characters in the play. Braddock is the ideal place to do the play."

For information about "Diagnosis Is Not a Destiny" and this summer's staging of "The Other Side of Wonderland," call 412-672-3913 or e-mail dfr425@comcast.net.