Sunday, January 17, 2010

Theatre company in Missouri highlights autism in production

From KOMU-TV in Missouri:

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The premiere of a new play hopes to bring with it information about a growing problem.

Autism is the nation's fastest growing disability, according to the Performing Arts in Children Education Youth Theatre Company (PACE). In order to bring awareness to the struggles families dealing with autism face, PACE is performing "Window Pains."

Local playwright, Hartley Wright, wrote the play as part of the group's Arts in Health series. The play's director, Angela Howard, said it took research to make the play accurate.

"We worked with the Thompson Center closely and did interviews, research, whatever we had to do to get the facts straight," Howard said.

Howard admitted that the program was harder to produce than a normal piece, but it was well worth it. She said added struggles came from making her child actors sensitive to the serious subject matter. However, Howard said all the children now have a much better understanding of the condition, in part due to working closely with a fellow actor with autism.

Dr. Stephen Kanne is a therapist that deals with families with autism every day. He had a large role in the play, checking the accuracy of the script and advising performers. He admitted that he was initially hesitant to be involved with the project.

"At first I was wary, but I decided that if this is something the Thompson Center is going to support, it needs to be something the Thompson Center would support," he said.

Even Kanne's 9-year-old daughter was happy to get involved after she attended an early script reading with her father.

"We've talked a lot about autism because of my job, but I think the play is a good experience for her," Kanne said of his daughter's involvement.

Howard said she hopes the experience will be a good one for everyone, especially the audience.

"I just hope people walk away with a little more understanding of what it takes to deal with this problem in your family," said Howard.