Autism: The Musical

Look at those faces! How can you not fall in love???

Last summer, my mom and I went to the Newport Film Festival where we saw, Autism: The Musical. It was held in a small, art film house to full capacity audience and was followed by a chat with the director, Tricia Regan.

We loved it. The audience loved it. I recognized one of the kids, very Fluffy-like in his mannerism, pontifications, charms and struggles. One of them has Fluffy's real name. My mom and I exchanged looks, squeezed each other's hand, cried into our kleenexes, laughed out loud. I saw myself in at least one of the mothers, in her intensity, her involvement, her over-involvement. And it goes without saying that I fell in love with all the kids.

We were told that the film would be shown in select theaters here and there but would be having its national premiere on television, HBO, sometime within the year.

Well, my friends, that time is here: Tuesday, March 25th, on HBO.

If you won't be home that night, if you don't have Tivo, if your husband slips in a tape that runs out before it captures the entire event, don't despair. You can go here the next day and watch it streaming on the site. It's not there now but you can go here and watch a little preview.

Don't watch if you're waiting for the show, for the performance, for the big night, for the musical itself. It's not about that. It's about the gathering of these kids, it's about the experiences of these parents, it's about the beauty in every child, regardless of neurology. It's about the singing that is going on every day, in our regular voices, the joyous, the fearful, the frustrated, the delighted, the proud.

I don't know if autism is an epidemic. I'm not sure about that. But I do know that this film was a startling, honest, and incredibly moving peek into the lives of these families, these people, and I came away feeling larger for having seen it, feeling grateful, feeling like singing myself.

Comments

[KC'sMommy]

I can't wait to see it! Thank you for the date/time.
We are going to definitely try RDI :)

[kal]

Just reading your post on this makes me tear up. Oh, I so want to see this! I keep saying we have to get HBO...guess I'm going to have to wait until the 26th. Thanks for the heads up.

[Jennifer]

I know HBO is airing the show from March 25th through April 27th. Check HBO.com for times. Also, Elaine has her own website, www.themiracleproject.com. Check it out! It has great information on how she is going to bring the Miracle Project to cities around the world. Pretty amazing! There is information about the kids from the movie and what they're doing now. It's a great site.

[Marla]

I can't wait to see this!

[Jennifer]

Ooh! Thanks for the tip.

[drama mama]

I love you.

[Anamaria]

I'll have to wait til the 26th and watch it on the computer, but I will. I've marked my calendar. Thank you!