One Woman’s Work with The Autistic Community Has Inspired Me to Do Work of My Own

 My inner theater kid is having a brain explosion. I just learned of a cool new theater project highlighting people on the Autism spectrum. I will link the article I read below and a video from South Florida news media highlighting an upcoming event the Autism Theater Project is putting together.

 

Before I get into my thoughts on how it is about time that theater and the arts regularly highlight persons with disabilities, let me tell you more about the Autism Theater Project (ATP). (See the links below for those who don’t want to read this blog part.)

 

The Autism Theater Project was started in 2020 by South Florida resident Gena Sims after a relative of a non-verbal student murdered the student she taught. To learn more about the project, you can visit their website at https://autismtheaterproject.org/

 

The work Ms. Sims is doing for the Autism community got me thinking: Why aren’t there more theater productions involving people with disabilities in the United States and worldwide? I’m not saying that there are none; I’m just saying that people with disabilities can express themselves just like everyone else, so I believe there should be more disabled people and parts specifically for us in place. We have made some strides, but Ms. Sims's work with one segment of the disability population demonstrates that it is possible for people with disabilities to reach a large audience.

 

On a personal note, maybe this article put a bug in my crawl because I have a degree in theater, and I believe that live theater is one of the most underappreciated art forms in modern society. Live theater is scripted, but it is not as controlled as the movies, meaning if you mess up a line, there is no chance to do it over again, at least not until the next show. I miss theater, so perhaps I will search Florida to see if any active theater groups near me are more accepting of people with disabilities. Do you, my loyal audience, know of such theater groups offhand? If so, you can leave the information in the comments.

 

Until next time,

Jay

 

https://autismtheaterproject.org/

https://www.fsacentral.org/post/premiere-of-the-voice-inside-celebrates-success-and-resilience-in-the-autism-community

Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 7, 2024 at 8:07 PM

    Don’t know for sure but some schools with a youth transition programs for those with disabilities may have theater programs.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jason HahrAugust 8, 2024 at 9:25 AM

    Thank you for your comment Samantha. You should put your name next time, lol. I will have to do research and it will give me material to write future posts.

    ReplyDelete

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