April is Autism Awareness Month
This is a call to parents, caregivers, and educators with children on the Autism spectrum to encourage and embrace performance practices, and to Teaching Artists to tweak their practice to maximize the success of these students. Theatre is a terrific way for children with Autism to have a structured environment in which to learn and practice interactive social behaviors. Moreover, the process of learning basic performance concepts revolves around unpacking and identifying gestures, body language, and subtext. The ideal environment for any kids working to memorize social cues (‘cues’ is a theatre word) in a safe, scaffolded context where they