FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact:

John Roper, Executive Director Audrey Pannell

205-908-1466 205.503.5955
john.roper@drradvocates.org audrey@styleadvertising.com

DISABILITY RIGHTS & RESOURCES HOSTS COMEDIAN JOSH BLUE

THURSDAY, FEB. 23 AT RED MOUNTAIN THEATRE. PROCEEDS WILL
HELP FUND THE NEXT STEP RESOURCE CENTER-A UNIVERSAL
DESIGNED CENTER TO SHOW THE CAPABILITIES OF A HOME
ENCOURAGING AND PROMOTING INDEPENDENT LIVING FOR ALL
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.

An Evening with Josh Blue will help fund a home to promote

independent living for those with disabilities.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Jan. 4, 2023 – Disability Rights & Resources (DRR), its Board of
Directors, and Executive Director John Roper are pleased to announce An Evening With Josh
Blue at the Red Mountain Theatre on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. Join us for live music, drinks,
hors d’oeuvres, and a silent auction starting at 5:30 p.m. Beginning at 7 p.m., DRR is bringing
Comedian Blue’s AS NOT SEEN ON TV TOUR to Birmingham for an evening of hilarious
entertainment. Proceeds from the Josh Blue show, and silent auction will help DRR establish the
organization’s first fully equipped ADA home, “The Next Step Resource Center”.

WHO: Disability Rights & Resources

WHAT: An Evening with Comedian Josh Blue
WHEN: Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023 - Doors open at 5:30 p.m.; show starts at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Red Mountain Theatre - 1600 3rd Ave. S., Birmingham, AL 35233
TICKETS: Prices range from $50 to $150.
WEBSITE: https://www.drradvocates.org/josh-blue-live-at-red-mountain-theatre/

Blue embodies DRR’s mission and is an outstanding example of what the organization wants
each person with disabilities to be—empowered and involved. Critics have said Blue is not a
cerebral palsy comic; he’s a comic who happens to have cerebral palsy. He does more than 200
shows every year, continuing to spread laughter and break down stereotypes of people with
disabilities. His stand-up routine is in a constant state of evolution, and his off-the-cuff
improvisational skills guarantee that no two shows are alike.

Following his third-place finish on NBC’s America’s Got Talent, Blue is lighting up the rest of
the country with laughter. After his groundbreaking win on Last Comic Standing in 2006, Blue
has risen through the ranks to become a well-established headliner at venues throughout the
world. In 2018, Josh crushed his set on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. In the same
year, he was honored with a performance at the William H. Macy Gala at the prestigious Just for
Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Canada. He wrapped up 2018 by recording his fifth hour
special, Broccoli, at his home club, Comedy Works in Denver, Co. 

“We believe independent living is based upon great peer relationships and principles of
integration, consumer control, cross-disability and equal access,” said John Roper, executive
director of DRR. “All of the organization’s services are community-based and non-residential in
nature because DRR believes advocacy is at the core of independent living. Josh Blue helps
inspire people to believe the same, and we can’t imagine having anyone else to jump-start our
‘Next Step, Home’ campaign.”

Although Blue’s tour will continue to another city after the evening, the financial impact of his
stop in Birmingham will leave a lasting impression on those who benefit from an Evening with
Josh Blue. With offices headquartered in Birmingham, DRR has the privilege of providing
services to residents in 20 Central Alabama Counties and plans to build The Next Step Resource
Center in the City of Birmingham.

The purpose of the Resource Center is to show the capabilities of a home that supports
independent living. DRR aims to encourage and foster the hope for the future of people with
disabilities to be able to live independently. The Resource Center is designed to fall in line with
the mission of DRR, and the universal design, also called barrier-free design, focuses on making
the house safe and accessible for everyone, regardless of age, physical ability, or stature. Each
room will have accessible features to make independent living more equitable, flexible, and
intuitive, promoting a lifestyle of Hope and Freedom within one’s home.

DRR can take steps in the right direction to improve lives in the community thanks to gracious
sponsors like Regions Bank-Title Sponsor, Dignity Memorial, Roper and Wilson Attorneys at
Law, Kellum & Wilson, Renaissance Birmingham Ross Bridge, The Bennett Group/Community
Action Partnership of North Alabama, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and Atlantic Video Corporation-
Silver.

For additional details about DRR, please visit https://www.drradvocates.org/. To buy tickets to
An Evening with Josh Blue, please visit https://www.drradvocates.org/josh-blue-live-at-red-
mountain-theatre/. For more about Josh Blue, visit https://www.joshblue.com/. For media
inquiries, please contact Audrey Pannell at (205) 503-5955 or audrey@styleadvertising.com.
View the media kit with photos, graphics, fact sheet, press release and more here.

About Disability Rights & Resources

Disability Rights & Resources (DRR) is a community-supported, 501(c)(3) dedicated to

empowering people with disabilities to fully participate in the community. The organization
encourages people with disabilities to support one another in reaching their own independent
living goals. DRR also promotes equal access and disability rights through advocacy and public
awareness activities. As a United Way Agency, DRR receives funding from the Administration
on Community Living, City of Birmingham, the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services,
the Alabama Department of Senior Services, The Children’s Trust Fund of Alabama, and the
Alabama Council on Developmental Disabilities.