Comedian invited man with cerebral palsy to join him on stage—the audience was not prepared for what he had in store

What many people disregard or fail to understand is that people with disabilities are in no way less in spirit and enthusiasm than others. Their problems may bring restrictions, but that is only limited to a certain aspect. No one can deny that many people with disabilities are as courageous, productive and even hard-working and talented as others. A comedian, Adam Ray–who goes by @adamraycomedy on Instagram–was trying to explain this point to a crowd when he got the chance to let them witness it in person. The comedian noticed a man, Avery Dauer (@averydauercomedy), seated in a wheelchair in the audience and asked him to join the stage. His reaction had left the audience jaw-dropped.

Ray was explaining to the crowds about his friend who is in a wheelchair but doesn’t let himself be limited by that. When he heard a faint cheer in the audience, he saw Dauer. “Are you in a wheelchair, too?” he asked. Ray asked why he was in a wheelchair, to which Dauer replied, “I’m like Ahren Belisle but not as bad.” Ahren Belisle is a comedian who has cerebral palsy. Nevertheless, Dauer took up the offer to come on stage. He mentioned that he had never done comedy before, but would love to give it a shot. He got up from his wheelchair and with the audience’s cheers echoing, he struggled and made his way to the stage.

As soon as he was on stage, he already began with his opening comment. “He’s not telling you that this is a Make-A-Wish,” Dauer joked, leaving Ray baffled at his natural talent. The comedian honestly confessed that he had looked at Dauer as a “person committed to the wheelchair,” but as soon as he got up and, though struggling, made his way walking, he knew there was way more energy and potential. Dauer explained that he was taking a year to figure out how stand-up comedy works and was getting inspired by other artists. He added that he had been working on some stuff too.

Ray gave him a start and said that his disability was actually a pro for him. To this, Dauer added, “Yeah, because this is like my Disneyland right here. I can come all the way up to the front, meanwhile, you guys have to sit there.” Giving the beginner a fresh feel of what it would be like to do a show, Ray created a whole scenario with Dauer as the main comedian. “I'm the best drunk driver in the world because are they gonna ask me to walk in a straight line?” he joked. Dauer added, “It’s hard for me to get girls and hookups because of my disability, but I don’t have to worry because as you see, when I get nervous, my leg becomes a kind of vibrator.”

He further shook and lost balance when Ray tried to hold him when the man proudly added his punchline, “Nah, I’m okay, man, I’m just pretty turned on right now.” Leaving the audience bursting with laughter and speechless at the same time, it was quite the experience. Even Ahren Belisle, @ahrenbelisle, was proud of the man and commented, “He killed it, haha.” @originaljbaum said, “Love to see kindness in comedy. Gotta be a core memory for all who were lucky enough to attend.” @powerjason1974 remarked, “A very impressive debut. Nice job, Avery.”

You can follow Adam Ray (@adamraycomedy) and Avery Dauer (@averydauercomedy) on Instagram for more content on comedy.