SOLANA BEACH — Like many fables, “One-Eye! Two-Eyes! Three-Eyes!” is the story of a person who, despite being mistreated for looking different, perseveres in the end. The Russian folk tale had a slightly more personal meaning when performed by the Pioneers Club, a group of young adults with developmental challenges such as Down syndrome and autism.

The play was one of several performances in “It’s Great to Be Different,” a multipart program presented by the group June 19 at St. James Community Hall.

The event gave Pioneers Club members an opportunity to showcase the many skills and talents they had been working on for months. Erick Abney participated in a taekwondo demonstration. Lindsay Krajewski sang Madonna’s “Live to Tell.” And everyone took part in a few dance numbers with Tony Petroulias and his Greek dancers.

“I loved working with them,” 25-year-old director Joseph Panwitz said about his cast. “They are absolutely amazing. They were always very happy to be working and have the chance to express themselves. Some of them are very shy and quiet, but they all totally stepped up to the challenge.”

Panwitz, who has performed with San Diego theater groups such as Cygnet, Diversionary and Fault Line, rehearsed with the group every Monday for four months. One week he held an improvisation workshop to help the performers communicate better and improve their confidence.

“I had them improv what they did that day, and we used people as props,” Panwitz, who recently began producing and directing, said. “There was a lot of motion, acting with communication and expressions.”

The Pioneers Club is based in Solana Beach but welcomes participants from throughout the county. Enrollment is ongoing and has ranged from 20 members to its current eight. It was developed by Project Turnaround, a San Diego nonprofit corporation founded in 1984 to research and develop social, intellectual and cultural programs and events for the young adult community with behavioral and social problems.

The Pioneers Club provides a variety of learning environments to challenge its participants. Programs include practical geography combined with ethnic cuisine and folk dancing to expand knowledge of the world; applied math to teach money management, comparative shopping and banking; dance, therapeutic movement and performing arts; and nutrition and cooking.

“It’s Great to Be Different” also allowed members of the group’s Gavel Club, an affiliate of Toastmasters International, to practice their speeches about making dreams come true.

“One of my dreams is to be an actress … and a singer … and learn how to dance,” said Caroline Vincent, who has Down syndrome.

Robert Wheeler, a music major at San Diego Mesa College, spoke about his mother, a musician who taught him to play the violin and piano, and how he taught himself the guitar. He said he dreams of writing blues songs about autism. Wheeler also said he wants to learn to sing the blues and write songs about disabilities and the environment.

The message of the evening and the Pioneers Club was perhaps best summarized in the refrain of one of Wheeler’s songs, “Do Not Laugh at Me.”

“Don’t laugh at me. Don’t call me names. Don’t get your pleasure from my pain,” sang Wheeler, who has autism. “In God’s eyes we’re all the same. Someday we’ll all have perfect wings.”