Actor Shawn Goodman meets with audience members attending a sensory-friendly version of the show.
It’s easy to forget how intense a theatrical performance can be. It’s the original virtual reality, and perhaps more immersive than any digitized entertainment.
Theater is 3-D and life-sized. Scenes occur in real time: shouting, exotic lighting, maybe even a sword fight or two. Romeo dies, Cyrano dies, Banquo becomes a ghost! And it’s all right there in front of you, just beyond your touch. If it’s done well, it can be a thrill ride.
But if you fall somewhere on the autism spectrum, that intensity can overwhelm. Children’s Theater of Madison is working to change that. As part of its Access for All program, CTM has been offering “sensory-friendly” performances since 2014.
“We think of our mission as offering opportunities for children in the Madison area. We wanted to be sure that when we’re doing that we’re serving all of them,” says Megwyn Sanders-Andrews, Access for All coordinator.
The company collaborates with Achieving Collaborative Treatment of Verona, a provider of autism behavior therapy across Dane County, and Communication Innovations Pediatric Therapy Centers, which serves Wisconsin.
CTM presents five mainstage performances a year at the Overture Center for the Arts. “We select two of those, and we say one performance of each will be a sensory-friendly performance,” says Erica Berman, CTM’s director of education and community engagement. “And we don’t open to the public. It is specifically for young people with special needs and their families.
Experts are brought in to watch dress rehearsals, looking for potential triggers. Meanwhile, parents can visit CTM’s website to download seating charts, Overture floor plans, and an 11-page “Social Story.” It’s a very basic guide for their children about what attending theater is like in general, and specifically at Overture. Photos of the center’s Playhouse theater are included, along with pictures of entrances and staircases.
The house opens early, so theatergoers can get a sense of the space. Tickets are $7, in recognition of the many financial demands sometimes experienced by parents of children with special needs. “Sensory kits” are available at every CTM performance and class. They include noise-blocking headphones, sunglasses and a “fidget” gadget.
The cast and volunteers for the CTM production of "How I Became a Pirate."
Patrons seat themselves. House lights are dimmed but remain on during the performance, and glow lights are used to warn that an intense moment is about to occur. The volume of music and sound effects is lowered.
Areas are set aside outside the auditorium to get away and watch the performance on video, and some are designated as quiet spaces. Restrooms are reconfigured to be gender-neutral and for families.
Actors, ushers and theater staff are all specially trained, as are volunteers, who help at areas offering activities related to the show, such as coloring pages.
If children react or make noise, it’s not a problem. Patrons can leave the theater whenever they want, and are welcome to return — or not.
Audience members are surveyed later, to find ways to improve. “My son often goes into fight or flight mode with lights and sounds,” says Michelle Hollman, a parent who attended CTM’s recent sensory-friendly performance of How I Became a Pirate. “But having the lights on during the show and having the volume at an appropriate level gave my family an opportunity to enjoy the performance together.”
And sadly, that can be rare. For CTM, the best comment, and a frequent one, is, “I didn’t know we could do this as a family.”
Now CTM is extending those ideas of accessibility and inclusion into its education program. “Neurotypical young people as well as young people with neurological differences or disabilities are able to take our classes,” says Berman. Additionally, three young people with disabilities have already served as teaching interns.
“For young people to see someone with disability in a position of power says something about representation, whether or not you have a disability,” says Berman.
It’s worth the extra effort to provide inclusive spaces, says Sanders-Andrews. “There’s really a substantial movement right now acknowledging the many benefits of working in theater for kids with autism,” she adds, noting that CTM is eager to share what it has learned with other area performance organizations. “It really doesn’t take much.”
Editor's note: The next CTM sensory-friendly performance will be Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka at 11 a.m. on May 4. Make reservations here.
