EXCLUSIVE: Rosie O’Donnell, a longtime autism advocate, has joined the producing team of Indigo, a new original musical about an unconventional family as seen through the eyes of a non-speaking autistic teenager.

O’Donnell, who spoke candidly in her recent Off Broadway show Common Knowledge about parenting a a child on the autism spectrum, decided to join the Indigo team after seeing the show’s premiere last year at the cided to join the production in reaction to her experience of the UK premiere of the show, which took place at the Curve Theatre in Leicester, UK.

Producers led by Lorenzo Thione, Joey Monda, and Jay Kuo of Sing Out, Louise! Productions, who announced O’Donnell’s involvement today, plan to move the production to London in late 2027, although venue, dates and cast have not yet been set.

“Indigo is the most beautiful and authentic depiction of autism in a kid as I have ever seen,” O’Donnell said in a statement. “This story needs to be seen by the world.”

Added producer Thione, “Rosie has spent years speaking candidly and with humor about neurodivergence to millions of people, in her own voice and on her own platforms. Now she is bringing that voice and the community she has built to Indigo and inviting them to experience this incredible story for themselves. We couldn’t be prouder of welcoming Rosie to the Indigo family.”

With a book by Kait Kerrigan, music & lyrics by Scott Evan Davis and direction by Catie Davis, Indigo tells the stories of three generations of women who “navigate a life of mistakes, broken promises, and ultimately, their need to reach one another.”

The full synopsis: “Elaine is starting to forget. Beverly wishes she wouldn’t remember. Emma just wants her family back…Indigo is an emotional exploration of the true meaning of family in a complex, neurodiverse, and not always easy world. Three generations of women navigate a life of mistakes, broken promises, and ultimately, their need to reach one another. Emma’s internal experience, in a world awash with color, allows the audience to experience life from her perspective, even while she remains silent to the outside world, as a non-speaking neurodivergent teen. A celebration of empathy, family bonds, and embracing new perspectives, Indigo feels like a story that’s familiar and relevant to each and every one of us.”

In addition to autism, the musical addresses such topics as Alzheimer’s, addiction, loss, “and the unbreakable ties of family.” The musical was conceived by Jay Kuo, Lorenzo Thione & Scott Evan Davis.

Composer and lyricist Davis has a longstanding personal connection to the autism community, as an educator and board member of Epic Players, a pre-eminent US neurodivergent theater company. Indigo has engaged neurodivergent artists throughout its creative process, both on and off the stage. In Leicester, as in every iteration prior, the actors who have played the leading role of Emma are themselves neurodivergent.

“When we first conceived Indigo,” said Davis, “our goal was never to explain autism to an audience. It was to tell the story of a kid who is not a victim, who is not broken and doesn’t need to be changed. It was to invite an audience in to feel what Emma feels and to see the world from her eyes.

“Rosie has spent years speaking up for neurodivergent kids to be seen for who they really are. Having her on our team is a reaffirmation of our goal and commitment.”

In addition to using her TikTok platform to address the subject of autism to her roughly 3 million followers, O’Donnell produced the 2025 documentary Unleashing Hope: The Power of Service Dogs for Children with Autism, which followed families, including her own, through the Guide Dogs of America service dog program. It was released on Hulu during Autism Awareness Month.

Broadway credits for producing company Sing Out, Louise! Productions including Days of Wine and Roses and Allegiance, which starred George Takei and Lea Salonga and was based on the true events of Takei’s life. Co-productions include Hadestown, The Inheritance, A Strange Loop, Slave Play, & Juliet, Mrs. Doubtfire and The Notebook, among others in both the US and the UK.