Twenty three year old Angela Bettoni who graduated with a  BA degree in Creative Arts from the  Malta College of Arts Science and Technology (MCAST) has achieved much at a young age. Having published several books she also got a JCI Malta (Junior Chamber International) Ten Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) award for her contribution to World Peace and/or Human Rights for her advocacy work on inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities. What is perhaps not known is that Bettoni was diagnosed with Down Syndrome when she was born in 2001 and it was then that her parents Dr Andrea and Dr Ramani Bettoni decided to give her every opportunity that came her way. A talented writer, actress and advocate for inclusion, we had a chat with her.

Q tell us about graduating and the qualification you obtained and all the hard work and effort it took to achieve this milestone.
I just graduated with a BA degree in Creative Arts. I have had very positive experiences during my six years at the Malta College of Arts Science and Technology (MCAST). Many of my lecturers were very encouraging and supportive. They treated me as they would treat any other student, but also made adjustments to accommodate me. By believing in me and encouraging me, they were able to give me confidence.

In my first year at MCAST (Level 4.1) for my Advanced Diploma in Performing Arts I was assigned a teaching assistant for two of the more technical units. However, the next year the teaching assistant didn’t work out, which meant I had to learn to adapt and cope on my own. In the first year of my Degree, MCAST suggested that I change from my BA in Performing Arts to one in Creative Arts, where I had the option to choose units from Creative Media Production, Journalism and Photography that I was interested in, and were in my range of abilities.

Q You have achieved much success at a young age, can you tell us about the highlights of your career?
In the first two weeks of June 2024, I had my very first artist residency in Venice where I worked on a mixed-ability dance performance ‘BALM’ . It was based on monologues I had written, and I worked with my collaborators - a choreographer, dance partner and dramaturg. I received funding from the Arts Council Malta towards it. In July 2024 we performed “BALM” at the Dance Festival Malta and at the Venere in Teatro Festival in Venice in September. In October 2024 I presented my BA dissertation findings on “Representation for people with learning disabilities in the performing arts in Malta’; at the State of the Arts Symposium in Malta. In 2022 I was the first co-presenter with Down Syndrome on Maltese TV on a programme called ‘Action!’ In December 2022 I got a JCI Malta (Junior Chamber International) Ten Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) award for Contribution to World Peace and Human Rights for my advocacy work on inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities.

Q What was the topic of your dissertation – briefly describe it.
The topic was on ‘Representation for people with learning disabilities in the performing arts in Malta’. In Malta, training for young people with learning disabilities in the performing arts is usually segregated and it is not common to have people with learning disabilities being represented on stage or TV. So my research question was on how to empower people with learning disabilities to break ableism in the performing arts in Malta.

Q What are some of the challenges and obstacles you faced?
During my years at college, I struggled with fine motor skills when I was doing my Advanced Diploma in Performing Arts. I would also struggle with time management with things like, at what time should I go to the next class after a break? In the beginning, I would struggle to take the bus from my college back home, like once I took a bus which took me in the wrong direction! Even though we had a class group chat I wasn’t informed all the time when we had to submit an assignment so that meant sometimes I had to contact one of my lecturers to help me or the class representative to help me.

Q Can you tell us about the support you received from your lecturers, parents and friends?
My parents, family, friends, mentors, classmates, my dissertation supervisor and lecturers have always been there, supporting, encouraging and empowering me throughout. My classmates supported me when we had to travel to different locations for different lectures. My parents always kept a note of when each of my assignments was due and made sure I submitted them on time. My mother also had the job of proofreading my dissertation. Some of my lecturers really encouraged me and believed in me, for example, Dr Tyrone Grima, my dissertation supervisor without whom I could not have done my thesis. There were also many other lecturers along the way who went the extra mile to support me.

Q Can you tell us about your latest book and what inspired you to write it?
My 5th book ‘Cameron’s Choice’ is about a 12-year-old boy who wants to change to become like his cool older brother and the wrong choices that he makes to become like him. It is set in a performing arts school. It was published in May in the UK by Palavro, an imprint of the Arkbound Foundation. Arkbound is a UK literature charity that supports authors from disadvantaged backgrounds, and I received an Arkbound mentorship a few years ago. I was inspired to write Cameron’s Choice by a book by S.E Hinton called ‘The Outsiders'.

Q How do you feel people's perceptions should change on special needs children?
It’s really about integrating them into their own communities whether it is the area where they live, school, leisure activities, sport activities and religious activities, especially from a very young age. Because it will help the rest of the community to treat the child like any other child. Children with learning disabilities just need the love and care that any child needs, disability or not.

Q You are truly an inspiration to others – how do you like to be seen by those who feel encouraged and inspired by you?
I want people to truly see me for who I really am. To see my heart.
Q What are you working on at present and what would you say is your most cherished ambition?
Next year I will be working on adapting one of my unpublished manuscripts called “Inner Demons” into an inclusive physical theatre and dance performance through creative workshops. I will be guided by three mentors, two who are Maltese and one who is based in Scotland. The project is funded by the Arts Council Malta. I would love to see Inner Demons actually perform on stage and play the main role. The main character in Inner Demons has Down Syndrome and is loosely based on me. My current ambition is to tour my mixed-ability performance ‘BALM’ to other dance festivals abroad.

Her mom  Ramani Wijesinha Bettoni had this to say
"To watch Angela go up on stage, poised and confident, to accept her BA degree was more than a dream come true for my husband and me. It made all the many years of hard work, on Angela’s part, but also ours, worth it. Little did we imagine this day would have come when we received her diagnosis of Down Syndrome (regular trisomy 21) a couple of days after she was born in Oxford in 2001, where we lived at the time. We knew nothing about Down Syndrome then but soon made it a point to find out everything we could. Those were the days of books and journal articles, so it took some time and effort. We decided early on to give Angela every opportunity we were able to provide and let her show us her limitations.

The last four years while she was doing her degree have sometimes been difficult, as we needed to almost constantly follow up with her on assignments due, especially for courses she was less interested in. Sometimes she would do the assignment but then miss the deadline for submission! We would like to say a big thank you to some of the lecturers at the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) who went the extra mile to support Angela, especially her dissertation tutor and other lecturers in the last two years of the degree.

Some words for parents: Every child with Down Syndrome is different, just like all children are different. Not every child with Down Syndrome will be able to achieve what Angela has managed, while others may go on to achieve even more. The main thing is to recognise where your child’s talents and interests lie and encourage them. Keep on believing and keep fighting for everything you know your child has the potential to achieve. Use all the resources available to you. For example, we are very happy to see that now Sri Lanka has the Ayati Centre in Ragama, which provides an excellent, free service of diagnosis and early intervention for children with disabilities."

By Kshalini Nonis