Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Program Hopes to Make Broadway Friendlier to Those With Autism
NYTimes.com: Earlier this month the Theater Development Fund, the nonprofit organization that runs the city’s TKTS discount ticket booths, announced it was starting the Autism Theater Initiative, which aims to make theatergoing accessible to children and adults living on the autism spectrum. The program kicks off on Oct. 2 with a sold-out matinee of “The Lion King” for what TDF, in a news release, calls “the first ever autism-friendly performance in Broadway history.”
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4 comments:
This is why the Broadway community is so amazing. They are willing to adjust the engine of a well oiled machine in order to accommodate members of the community who are commonly forgotten. Were an autistic child to go see a movie, that movie would not be adjusted for him or her as a live Broadway show can be. It is the open arms and kind heart to all that make the theater a truly unique place to be.
I wouldn't be surprised if this initiative is related to the uproar from a few years ago about disabilities. While the disabled community may not be cast in roles with disabilities, this program may be an outreach. Beyond all the probable causes, I still find this to be an admirable problem. Bringing theater to those that may not have the means or abilities to see them is a wonderful cause.
This is so wonderful! It is great to see that there is a program willing to even consider these accommodations that are so often never even thought about. It is wonderful to see that even something as huge as Broadway is willing to take the time to make these changes to reach an audience that could have such a better viewing experience with just those few changes-- changes that most people would never have even thought would be helpful for those with disabilities.
This is fantastic! I can only hope that the producers/casts/crews of more shows will catch on to this. In the grand scheme of things, it would not really be too much work to accommodate Autistic audiences say, once or twice a month. And in the grand scheme of the life of an Autistic child or adult, this experience could be huge. I think that more theatre practitioners just need to be informed of how they can be accommodating. At work this summer a group of deaf audience members came to Mystere. The main accommodation was simply providing an interpreter with a script and providing a light for that interpreter when he needed to be seen. After the show the interpreter spoke with the management team about how they could help more and a new plan has been put into place for when that situation arises again. As long as we as theatre practitioners stay informed, then we can be the most accommodating. And we should be as accommodating as possible, because we're trying to touch lives and teach about the human condition, after all, right?
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