If you are in New York City and have the chance, definitely check out Lincoln Center’s Big Umbrella Festival. It kicked off last weekend and runs through May 6th, in support of Autism Awareness month. This festival is the world’s first month-long festival dedicated to arts programs for children on the autism spectrum and their families. Read more about its objective and offerings at http://lincolncenter.org/big-umbrella/about.
We had the pleasure of attending one of the shows last weekend featuring The New York Philharmonic and one of their Very Young People’s Concert titled “Make-Believe.” Given the nature of the festival, I was not anxious at all about how Dubbers would do, in fact I was excited to share this experience with him! The description online said the atmosphere would be relaxed and sensory friendly. They even included a social story that I showed Dubbers the morning before we went.
There were two parts to the hour long show. The first half (which of course we missed because we are always late) was more interactive and included games with the musicians. There were six instruments: Clarinet, Bassoon, Trumpet, Violin, Cello and Piano. The second half was the concert and story of Philippe the penguin and his kitchen. It was simple, short and very sweet! Children and their families were able to sit on the floor close to the stage or in chairs further away.
Dubbers sat with Phil just below the stage and did great. While he can not say, we could tell he enjoyed, or at least was intrigued by the music and attended to the story. The other children in the audience, presumably also “on the spectrum,” were delighted and engaged. They laughed and followed along with the pretend nature of the story. It was simply an experience that allowed these children and their families an hour to enjoy something typically very hard to do otherwise.
I highly recommend checking out any of the remaining shows that still have availability. We will be going to another in two weekends, Oddysea, and I look forward to sharing!
