The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre is presenting this country’s first-ever autism-friendly performance of The Nutcracker at the Benedum Theater in Pittsburgh on Friday, December 27, 2013 at 2:00 p.m. Pediatric Alliance is proud to support this important event by raffling off tickets to families whose children would really appreciate the experience!
Since we posted Joyce Douglas’ “My Story – The Land of Sweets”, we have received many entries to our contest, along with some terrific comments:
This is so great! Speaking as a “theatre person”, I am so, so incredibly proud that PBT has recognized the cultural needs as well as the different physical and emotional needs of kids on the autism spectrum! Why should they be deprived of something so beautiful and moving as ballet simply because they might not be able to process it exactly the same way as a person without autism? Bravo to you, PBT!
Another:
My daughter loves music and dancing but I have never dared to take her to the ballet.
Another:
4 tickets. Thank you for this opportunity!! It would mean so much to our family.
Another:
We would love to attend the performance with our son. If possible, we would like three (3) tickets to go see the performance. I think he would love it, and we rarely get to go out with him to performances such as these, because it is too loud or frightening to him. Thank you for offering this opportunity!
Another:
Thank you for the opportunity of this raffle. We’ve been looking for something like this for a long time.
The contest is for any child who could appreciate this particular version of The Nutcracker:
I would like to put our family’s name in for the Nutcracker performance. Our son is 5. Although he does not have autism he has been diagnosed with a sensory processing disorder and has anxiety disorder. This type of performance seems like an excellent idea for kids with autism and like my son, who suffer from sensory processing. Loud noises and bright lights bother him sometimes to the point of not being able to stay in a movie theater because the sound is too loud. We would love the opportunity to share this experience with him. Thank you!
Another:
Our whole family would love to go see the ballet! Our son has a PDD diagnosis as well a hearing impairment, and a huge love of the arts. We have not been able to bring him to such performances and hope we can all get this opportunity together.
Another:
Wow! I was so happy to read that Pittsburgh Ballet is doing this! My oldest son has autism and we try very hard to expose him to as much as possible, while still trying to be compassionate when things are just “too much.” I can’t tell you how excited we would be to attend this special performance!
Another:
I will need 3 tickets please. My child has PDD-NOS and also has ADHD. She is 9 1/2 years old and has always wanted to see the Nutcracker. Things this year are financially tight and I cannot afford to take her to see the Nutcracker. This would make a wonderful Christmas gift for her. Thanks!
Last one (for now):
From a parent of a special needs child living with autism, I am thankful more people are being mindful of the sensory challenges they face. My son loves music and dancing, but we have been leery of taking him to the ballet as he may need to get up frequently, and my not be able to handle the crowd. Thank you for opportunities like these for him to have a chance to enjoy these aspects of life!!!
Note to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: there is a real hunger in this community for programs like this. More please!
Read Joyce Douglas’ post: “My Story – The Land of Sweets” and find out how to enter the contest for tickets here.