The Music Man Project in New York: Part 5 – Leaving No One Behind: The United Nations
PART 5 - Leaving No One Behind: The United Nations
Taking The Music Man Project to New York to debut my original musical, Music Is Magic on Broadway, at the iconic Town Hall had been both the greatest challenge and the greatest triumph of my career.
But we weren't finished yet!
Less than 24 hours after our Broadway debut, my musicians would be dancing alongside international diplomats at the United Nations!
Not many people can say they've performed at the UN. I suspect even fewer have made their Broadway debut and performed at the United Nations on consecutive days!
Two groundbreaking milestones for musicians with learning disabilities. Two remarkable opportunities to demonstrate The Music Man Project's contribution to the UK's leadership in accessible arts and culture.
Two moments that the fresh-faced, rather naïve David Stanley who started out 27 years earlier could never have imagined.
From a single student in my hometown of Southend-on-Sea in 1999, to 27 regional projects across the UK, reaching five continents around the world, and now the bright lights of Broadway and the United Nations.
It was almost impossible to comprehend.
These performances were about far more than fulfilling dreams or celebrating achievements. They were about changing expectations, and at the United Nations, I had an opportunity to explain why.
From Churchill Fellow to the United Nations
Seven years earlier, in 2019, I had visited the United Nations during my Churchill Fellowship, exploring how organisations around the world were creating opportunities for people with learning disabilities. I was appalled at the lack of learning and developmental disability representation in the UN building and wrote an impassioned blog which can be read here: https://www.themusicmanblog.com/post/who-is-the-un-for. I remember dreaming that one day I might return with my own students.
At the time, it seemed an almost impossible ambition but then again, so had the London Palladium, the Royal Albert Hall and Broadway! Now, in October 2026, I had returned to New York with 16 remarkable Music Man Project Global Ambassadors, supported by our wonderful singers, musicians and families.
This time, we weren't simply visiting the United Nations. We were performing there!
Our appearance at the United Nations had been organised entirely by our remarkable President, Dame Penny Mordaunt DBE, and generously funded by TEAM LEWIS. Without them, this extraordinary opportunity simply would not have happened. Their belief in our mission, their generosity, encouragement and practical support have helped us achieve things I could scarcely have imagined five years earlier.
They didn't simply support a concert or a fundraising appeal. They believed in the future of The Music Man Project and helped open doors that might otherwise have remained firmly closed.
Security was understandably tight as we arrived at the United Nations. Even the electric piano we hired for the performance had to be inspected by a security dog! Thankfully, everything got through, including our drummer Daniel, who had endured that difficult experience with immigration officials when we first arrived in New York. After that ordeal, I was relieved that neither Daniel nor the piano caused an international incident!
Our official photographer, Jon, took some wonderful photographs both inside and outside the building. Posing beside the famous UN flag and other iconic landmarks, it felt as though we had finally arrived, not just on the international stage, but at a place where decisions were made that could shape the future of our planet.
Only a couple of weeks earlier, representatives of the UN's 193 Member States had gathered for the 2026 United Nations General Assembly to discuss and debate some of the most pressing issues facing the world.
And now, here we were, not as tourists, but as performers and invited guests.
We had something rather special to share with the world: The Music Man Project!
Our Global Ambassadors had already given everything they had on Broadway the previous evening. Yet here they were, less than 24 hours later, sharing their music with distinguished guests and international representatives at the UN.
I couldn't have been prouder. It was another reminder of the stamina, professionalism and sheer determination of musicians who had spent years proving that disability should never determine the limits of anyone's ambition.
A Promise to Leave No One Behind
I had been invited to address the British Ambassador, distinguished guests and delegates at the United Nations. It was an opportunity to share the story of The Music Man Project, but more importantly, to explain what our achievements meant for the future of accessible arts and culture.
The central message of my speech was simple: I want what we do to become normal.
I don't want performances by people with learning disabilities at prestigious venues to be regarded as astonishing exceptions. I want everyone to recognise themselves in the cultural life of their country.
The United Nations has made a commitment to leave no one behind. For me, that promise must include the right to participate fully in music, theatre, dance and every other form of artistic expression.
Article 30 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognises the right of disabled people to participate in cultural life on an equal basis with others. It also calls for measures that enable disabled people to develop and use their creative and artistic potential, not only for their own benefit, but for the enrichment of society as a whole.
Those words could almost have been written for The Music Man Project!
For 27 years, I had witnessed the remarkable transformation that takes place when people with learning disabilities are given opportunities to discover and develop their musical talents. I had seen tentative first steps become confident performances. I had watched musicians who were once underestimated receive standing ovations from thousands of people.
And I had witnessed the pride of families who had once been told that their children would never achieve anything.
But none of this happens by accident.
It requires regular teaching, accessible rehearsal spaces, sustained investment, encouragement and meaningful opportunities to perform. It requires teachers who believe in their students, organisations willing to open their doors and leaders prepared to challenge outdated expectations.
Above all, it requires society to recognise artistic excellence wherever it exists.
Broadway had been about honouring the past. The United Nations
was about shaping the future.
In the years following Sir David's death, our musicians had performed for royalty, political leaders and international audiences; collaborated with His Majesty's Royal Marines Band Service, the Royal Air Force and Michael Ball; received prestigious national honours; and carried our message of inclusion around the world.
But standing at the United Nations felt different. This wasn't simply another prestigious performance. It was an opportunity to speak on behalf of a community whose artistic potential has been underestimated for far too long.
And I was doing so alongside 16 remarkable musicians who had every right to be there. We were not asking for permission to belong. We were demonstrating what belonging looks like.
Leave No One Behind – In Action!
The most wonderful thing about The Music Man Project is that we don't simply talk about inclusion. We demonstrate it through music, and our United Nations performance was a perfect example. Here were musicians with learning disabilities, fresh from their Broadway debut, sharing their talents with international representatives in one of the world's most significant institutions. There was no need for anyone to make allowances for their abilities or lower their expectations. Our musicians were there because they had earned their place through years of dedication, rehearsal and musical achievement. And, as always, they brought something else to the occasion.
Joy!
The British Ambassador to the United Nations General Assembly, Archie Young, summed up what we had achieved with words I will treasure:
“You are 'leave no one behind' in action.”
And then, to everyone's delight, the Ambassador joined our musicians in dancing the Can-Can!
I couldn't have wished for a better demonstration of what we had come to New York to achieve. For one unforgettable moment, titles, positions, backgrounds and abilities simply didn't matter.
We were people making music together.
With the British Ambassador doing the Can-Can.
Anything Is Possible
As our extraordinary New York adventure drew to a close, I found myself reflecting on everything that had happened.
The cancelled flights.
The fundraising.
The anxious moments at immigration.
The wonderful friendships and partnerships across New York.
The laughter, the tears, the standing ovation on Broadway.
Sir David's megaphone.
And now, the United Nations.
Twenty-seven years earlier, I had begun teaching music to one student in Southend-on-Sea. I had no idea where that first lesson would lead. I certainly couldn't have imagined that one day I would be standing at the United Nations, having just led a company of musicians with learning disabilities onto a Broadway stage.
I had always believed that my students deserved the same opportunities as anyone else. I had always been willing to dream.
Yet for all our achievements, I knew that the work was far from finished because I don't want Broadway and the United Nations to remain extraordinary exceptions. I want the next generation of musicians with learning disabilities to grow up knowing that the world's greatest stages, institutions and cultural experiences belong to them too.
I want their families to be encouraged to dream, rather than warned about limitations. I want schools, conservatoires, orchestras, theatres and cultural institutions to recognise that inclusion is not simply about allowing people to participate.
It's about providing the opportunities, teaching, support and expectations that enable them to excel. I want the achievements of musicians with learning disabilities to become so familiar that nobody thinks twice about seeing them on the world's greatest stages.
Because talent is everywhere. Opportunity is not.
Inclusion will only truly succeed when what we have just achieved is no longer considered extraordinary.
As I looked back on those unforgettable days in New York, I thought again of Sir David Amess. I hoped he would have been proud. I could almost hear his voice, full of enthusiasm, urging us towards our next adventure.
“Go on, David! You can do it! Onwards and upwards!”
We had fulfilled his Broadway dream. We had taken our message to the United Nations.
Somewhere along the way, we had reminded the world that music really does belong to everyone.
Anything is possible.
Read My Full Address to the United Nations
On 8th October 2026, I had the privilege of addressing distinguished guests and delegates at the United Nations in New York. My speech reflected on The Music Man Project's 27-year journey, the importance of cultural rights and my vision for a world in which people with learning disabilities have equal opportunities to participate in the arts.
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