14 · SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2019 TRIB TOTAL MEDIA
INTHEARTS
A THEATER
EXPERIENCE
OF THEIR OWN
Jumping Jack Theater offers sensory-friendly performances for those on spectrum
For a child on the autism spectrum, a
sensory-friendly performance offers the
chance to see a play, musical or ballet
without some of the stimuli that might
ordinarily be overwhelming.
But what if a sensory-friendly performance
meant more than just dimming but
not darkening the lights, turning down
the volume of the music and microphones
and removing loud and startling sounds?
What if the main character of the play was
a non-verbal girl who loses her favorite
object, the thing that brings her comfort?
Woodland Hills autism support teacher
Lauren Dankert knows the answer to those
questions after bringing Jumping Jack
Theater’s original production, “Cityscape,”
to her classroom.
“(The students) loved it,” said Dankert,
who teaches first- through third-graders.
“They were actively engaged, and some
were students who are not actively engaged
during the typical curriculum or a
typical day. They were engaged, and it had
them captivated.”
In recent years, performing arts companies
all over the country have embraced
sensory-friendly performances, but what
sets Pittsburgh-based Jumping Jack Theater
apart is that instead of adapting existing
works, they create original performances
specifically for the autism community.
The idea started several years ago over
Casey Kilroy in Jumping Jack Theater’s production of ‘Cityscape’ studies her nest as
Pigeon during the show.
coffee between friends. Rebecca Covert and
Stephen Santa both have a long history
of working in the arts and one day were
lamenting the fact that there were so few
options for Covert’s son, who has autism,
to experience live theater.
“We decided one day that since there
isn’t anything filling that need in Pittsburgh,
we should be the people who do
that,” Santa said.
As they tried to think of what to name
the theater company, they thought about
the reason why they were doing it—Covert’s
son, Jack.
“I asked, ‘What does Jack like to do?’
and she said, ‘Well he’s very active, and he
loves jumping on the trampoline,’” said
Santa, the group’s artistic director.
“We came up with Jumping Jack Theater,
and I love the name because it keeps us
grounded and focused on why we’re doing
this.”
The group’s first performance was called
“The Light Princess,” and it premiered
through the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust two
years ago. “Cityscape” premiered in March
2018, also through the Pittsburgh Cultural
Trust, and they’ve been taking it to
classrooms, schools and other venues ever
since.
Original theater written for those on the
autism spectrum is still a new genre, said
Claire Sabatine, the director of marketing
and community engagement.
“Only a handful of companies in the
world are doing it,” she said.
Sarah Carleton, as M.C. in Jumping Jack Theater’s ‘Cityscape,’ admires her box of
favorite things.
PHOTOS: JUMPING JACK THEATER
BY KAREN PRICE
FOR TRIB TOTAL MEDIA