Transcript
Speaker: Have you ever looked at Broadway tickets and thought, there's likely no way my child could sit through that? Maybe your child may need a break. Maybe they're going to make a little noise or simply can't stay in their seat.
Speaker: What if I told you that Broadway and theater in general has become far more accessible than many families may realize? Today we're talking about sensory-friendly theater experiences in New York City and beyond, and how all children can successfully enjoy the magic of live theater with musical theater educator expert, Erica Giglio-Pock.
Speaker: Welcome to Family Travel that supports ADHD, autism, and anxiety. A podcast for families who love to travel and have children with big feelings, challenging moments.
Speaker: I'm Joseph Bianchi, a mom to three children, a board certified pediatrician, and a travel lover. If you're raising children with ADHD, autism, anxiety, or other behavioral differences, and the idea of travel feels both exciting and overwhelming, this podcast is for you.
Speaker: Today we're stepping away from our usual 3-2-1 format to explore how thoughtful planning and the right accommodations can help all children access one of New York's most iconic experiences, live theater.
Speaker: Because travel isn't just about where we go, it's about helping our children access meaningful experience and create lasting memories along the way. Whether you're planning your first road trip, you're already seasoned family travelers, or you're a theater lover who wants to share that experience with your kids, our podcast is here to help you feel seen, supported, and maybe even inspired to book that next adventure. Because around here, we believe in wandering without limits.
Speaker: So grab your crew, your luggage, and your love of adventure, and let's hit the road together. Today we're talking about one of New York's most iconic experiences, Broadway and live theater. For many families, the idea of sitting through a live performance can really feel overwhelming.
Speaker: But the good news is that theater has become increasingly inclusive and there are wonderful options available for all families. We're going to break down those options and unpack how to make this experience doable and fun with Erica Giglio-Pock. Erica is a lifelong theater educator and arts education school administrator.
Speaker: She currently serves as K-12 Director of Fine Performing and Media Arts for the Oyster Bay East Norwich School District. She's an adjunct professor at Adelphi University and the Educational Theater Graduate Program, has extensive experience in educational theater as a K-12 theater teacher, and has participated in autism-focused educational training through the ASD NEST program in partnership with and NYU.
Speaker: She's worked with organizations like the Roundabout Theater Company and serves on the advocacy committee with the New York State Theater Educators Association. Erica is a performer herself, performing in iconic roles from Paulette in Legally Blonde to Ursula in The Little Mermaid. But her favorite role is that of mom to an eight-year-old boy my godson, who also has a love of music, theater, and all the arts.
Speaker: And she's my cousin. I'd like to think maybe all of our dramatic plays children inspired her journey, but who knows? Erica, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker: Thank you so much for having me, Josette. Thank very fun to be with you here today. Okay, so tell us a little bit about your journey into theater. What keeps you passionate about it in this work, both from a performing and an educational perspective?
Speaker: So my first venture into theater was third grade. I have my third grade teacher to thank, Ms. Petillo, who I'm still friends with today and still comes to see me perform. She gave me the theater bug, as you say, put me in my first show on stage, Peter Pan, and the rest is really history. Once you get that taste, if it's the thing for you, it's very hard to to lose that in your life. So obviously I've been performing many, many years. As you mentioned earlier, of a background in musical theater performance and theater education. So the transition to theater ed was to pay it forward, to give kids the opportunities that I had as a kid because it
Speaker: absolutely changed my life. It changed my trajectory. It gave me confidence. It gave me a home. It gave me a community. And I wanted to give that to kids. So that is why I became a theater teacher. And now I'm an arts administrator, giving that to even more children within a whole school district and advocating for them at the state level. So ah it's it's my my life's work, definitely.
Speaker: It is. And you've had many roles. You've worked as a performer, and educator, as you said. Now you're an administrator, a mentor, an advocate. So how has your perspective grown and evolved over the years? And how are these roles different for you?
Speaker: So I think the biggest shift for me was always just thinking that performing on the Broadway stage was the end all be all. If you reach that goal, you were, you made it, you made it girl. That's it. But you know what? I learned over the years that there's so much more to what theater has to offer than just entertainment. And that is a huge part of it. And that that entertainment doesn't have to be on Broadway. Regional theaters, community theaters, touring companies. If you're performing on a cruise ship, any venue for entertainment, if it's fulfilling you as an artist, as a performer, as a director, then you're getting your fill. If you feel like you're giving back, you're making people happy, you're entertaining people. But...
Speaker: As I got more into the education end of things, what I learned more and more was that theater could be used as a tool to teach, not just to entertain. So we always talk about the difference of theater as a tool to perform and inform. What is it doing? Is it doing both? So if you think about certain shows you've seen, there's perhaps a message, a greater message, a political message, a social message. it could just be sheer entertainment. I just saw Titanic last week, and that is just a pure, fun, campy entertainment show.
Speaker: But it's There are shows and there are theater experiences and tools that we don't even use on stage. There's drama therapy, right? I'm sure you've heard of like music therapy, art therapy. There's drama therapy. People are certified drama therapists and that is their tool, their therapy tool that they use with their patients.
Speaker: Theater also can just be used in the classroom to give students an opportunity to walk in someone else's shoes, to teach them something, to learn about another human's experience. And I think I've shifted over the years to to looking more at the how theater can teach end of things versus just entertain. Don't get me wrong. The entertainment part is still my jam, but it's super crucial still. Super crucial. still super It's super crucial, but it also that balance has definitely shifted over the years. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, I love that. And i love how that perspective has evolved and changed for you. That's great. So you touched on this a little bit, but just a little bit more. What skills can theater give our kids? And why is it such an important educational tool? And how can it help all kids?
Speaker: Yes. I definitely, I'm going to have to limit myself here because I could go on about this forever and ever because I do fight for theater education in the classroom, in all schools, at all grade levels because of all the skills it gives our kids. Let's face it. Not every kid's going to be on stage. Not every kid's going to be a Broadway performer.
Speaker: Not every kid's going to go on to do this for a living, but every job, every career, Every venture a child will have in their adult life, there are theater tools that they will have learned if they're lucky enough to have had that exposure that will serve them.
Speaker: Learning how to public speak, learning how to have appropriate posture when you're in a room. Learning how to make eye contact. Right. And we talk about with kids with needs. These are some of the things they especially need support in and need to have exposure and tools to to do those things.
Speaker: Collaboration, working with other artists, working with other performers. Right. How do we all work towards a common goal together? We're an ensemble. We are, we have whatever the end goal is. If we're doing a show, if we're doing some kind of a student device piece of theater, we're working on this together. We have to be able to listen to feedback. We have to be able to give and receive feedback. How much more of a life skill, right? Can you have no matter what job you're in, no matter what you choose to do, right? To me, the number one, if I, and as I said, I could go on and I won't, is, is empathy.
Speaker: Because when you are engaging in drama, you are taking on a role, you are taking on another human's experience, you are walking in their shoes, you are understanding that on a level that maybe you haven't in your own life, And I just think overall it makes people just more empathetic people in general, because you're you're going on a journey with someone else's human experience and you're thinking about what that what does that mean to you? How do you relate to that? How would you connect to that in your own life? and the conversations that can come out of that when you're workshopping something in a drama classroom. Like, how did that make you feel? Why would that make that character feel that way, Josette? Why would that person do that? What might they do differently?
Speaker: These are also like life skills. What would you do in an emotional, right? So those would those would definitely be my main my main ones, but there are so, so many byproducts of engaging in theater that are are lifelong skills that you develop.
Speaker: Absolutely. two things come to mind when you're talking about this. The first is that one of my children, I think, you know, initially was interested in theater and took lots of theater classes. And now as she's getting older and doing mock trial model, yeah and thinking about a career in law, she says all the time, mom, those theater classes I took when I was younger helped me so much. And in transitioning to these clubs and thinking about my public speaking skills, all that. So that's one thing. And the other thing I think about is someone who's a medical educator, the trainees, like how amazing this would even be for them to do and try, right? Because like you're talking about empathy.
Speaker: seeking and receiving feedback, understanding another person's lived experience. I'm even starting to think in my head like of this could be a creative way to engage with some of our medical trainees.
Speaker: I imagine not to go off the rails, but I imagine i imagine that in some port part of your medical training, you had to do some role playing when you were the the doctor and then you had a patient come in. Because I know there are some acting jobs where you can, you learn a certain, you know, whenever your medical. Yeah, like patient simulation. Simulation, that what it's called? Okay. Yeah, yeah. So for we would I would say this is role play in our world. But like, I actually know somebody who does that. And I'm like, what a cool job. But then I'm thinking, wow, these future doctors, they are engaging in ah a dramatic activity and dramatic. it really is like that. yeah So it's it's very interesting. And it does teach these life skills that you said, like really can translate nice into any career path or interest you have later.
Speaker: Definitely. Agreed. So let's talk a little bit about, because I think our audience listening wants to know about sensory friendly theater. So let's just start with the basics. What is it and what's involved in those performances?
Speaker: So a lot of theaters regionally, professionally have become very good about having some form of this available to their patrons. And I'm, I am,
Speaker: So happy to see that. I'm also a parent of a student with special needs with ADHD. And i I think that this is, especially when you're thinking about your regional theaters, your local theaters, this is a great kind of stepping stone before you start maybe going to those big shows, those longer shows, those more expensive shows. So, so number one that they are going to be looking at in a sensory friendly performance is sound and lights.
Speaker: Those are the two things, right? Are there any bright flashing lights, sudden lights, strobe lights, things like that, loud noises, jarring noises, things that could be potentially upsetting or triggering for a kid maybe.
Speaker: they will just reduce that or eliminate that from that particular performance. So that's number one. Number two, house lights. Those are the lights when you walk in the theater. They're often when a show starts, what happens? They dim down, right? in a sensory perspective,
Speaker: friendly performance, typically the house lights will actually just remain on so that you have the comfort of being able to see everyone around you and you're not like in a dark space. And then it also makes the lights on stage a little less exaggerated when you're also in a space with light, if that makes sense. So that sound and lights are a big one you're going to see adjustments with.
Speaker: Also, and this is not, it depends on the theater, but a lot of the theaters are partnering with professionals, right? Because they don't necessarily have the tools to give the kids and the audiences what they need. So they're working closely with professionals that are in the field to make sure that they're using them as consultants making sure that they are giving them artistically what is gonna meet them in terms of accessibility and enjoyability. And then another thing you might see is something called like a pre-show resource. So, and this is big in the education world, even kids with special needs, kids without special needs, we always prep a kid for a show, young people in general. So that would be things like getting them to understand a little bit about what they're going to see, maybe some visual narratives, maybe some watching some clips beforehand, listening to some music beforehand. What will, it's called priming in education, right? Like So we're going to prime them know what they're going to expect, not just during the show itself, but as we enter the theater, as we wait on line. Maybe we have to wait on a long line for the bathroom. There may or may not be an intermission. So that is something you may want to prepare your child for. And you may get those resources as part of the package of seeing a sensory friendly performance in some of the
Speaker: theaters. You'll also see additional staffing, usually more volunteers throughout the space available. And you will often always see some kind of a break zone.
Speaker: That's a big one. So kind of a sanctioned area that would be open to anyone who needs to take a break from the performance and have just a quiet space void of of any stimuli. And I think people don't say this, but I think like a happy byproduct of going to a sensory friendly performance is that everyone else there probably has maybe a similar situation to you. And I think that they are going to be a much more empathetic audience. If maybe your child does have a problem or maybe gets dysregulated, they're not going to be the ones who are going be eye rolling. They're going to say, hey, you know, been there, done that. We get it. We're here. it's I think it's going to be an even more supportive audience and staff. and actors on stage who are just going to understand, okay, we have some different needs today and that's wonderful. And these wonderful people get to experience live theater today. And that's our goal is to make sure as many people can experience live theater as possible. So so those will be the main things that you would see and hear.
Speaker: I think as a parent that just knowing that the next question I was going to ask is actually about reducing parent anxiety, but I think you kind of answered it a little bit, but so many parents, it's a great lead in. It's just like yeah so many parents.
Speaker: Even myself, sometimes I worry, like, what if my child talks or what if they need to take that break and leave like you talked about? Or what if other people kind of judge us? Like, how do you navigate that and still try and enjoy it? Because, right, kids often feel your anxiety or if you're not enjoying something. You're projecting that 100%. Yes.
Speaker: You want to be calm and act like you're having fun, but it can be stressful. So just, I guess, talk a little bit about that more, about how to reduce that anxiety as a parent that we all may be feeling.
Speaker: So people always asks ask, how do you reduce nerves before an audition? This is a question that everyone always asks. And I think everyone has a different answer, of course.
Speaker: For me, it would be the same answer to the question you just asked. Preparation is key. Knowing what to expect, knowing what you're going to see, looking at a picture of the theater, looking at a picture of the seating chart, knowing how close the door is, knowing how big is this theater? Are there going to be a lot of people? Is it a smaller theater?
Speaker: making sure you're not rushing to get there, right? Especially if we're going to talk about Manhattan later, you better leave yourself a cushion times three because- i I went there the other day and did not for a show and I did not leave myself a cushion and it does make a huge- You are already running in stress, okay? Okay. So I believe that preparation, planning solves stress in and almost every situation. Auditions, right? Like going in there, be like, I know this song, I'm going to nail this, right? all All of that. It's the same for something like this. Just knowing what you're going to get into, knowing the exits, maybe knowing like how to get out if you need to get out, knowing that it's Likely if you're seeing the right kind of show that's maybe more geared to your child's age, guess what?
Speaker: There's going to be other kids there making noise. Needs or no needs. Kids talk. Kids, and they're learning how to be theater goers. Yes. It's a skill to be an audience member. And I'm going to tell you what, Josette, there are some adults who haven't figured it out yet, okay? Okay. Why do you think they have to make the please unwrap your candy announcement before the show for grown adults? Because you're going to have your fun little neighbor who's crinkling during a pivotal dramatic moment in the middle of a show.
Speaker: you We all have to learn how to be good theater goers. And this is that child's opportunity to do that. And guess what? The more they do it, the more they get better at it, the less your stress and your pity will be present in those moments. Yeah.
Speaker: I love that. We talked about that yesterday. i had another guest I was interviewing and we talked about like there, you don't want to overwhelm your child or overwhelm other people, but you don't want to avoid any discomfort because then don't learn the skill. yeah And we have to give our kids these opportunities to learn the skill. So it's picking that like right setting where they have that chance to learn the skill just like everybody else.
Speaker: In anything that you do, you have to push through the discomfort to learn something in everything you do. So I agree with that wholeheartedly. That's a good very good piece of advice.
Speaker: So this is a family travel podcast. We definitely have some listeners out there who want to navigate that classic New York City experience and are thinking about integrating a Broadway show or maybe an off-Broadway show into that experience. So can you talk a little bit about what options they may have for that?
Speaker: Absolutely. So TDF, which is the Theater Developmental Fund, starting in like 2011, they have the TDF autism-friendly performances for a lot of the Broadway shows that you may want to take your child to. Things like Lion King, Wicked, Aladdin, Harry Potter, even the Rockettes have a sensory-friendly performance. So definitely check out that's great TDF autism-friendly performances. The new Victory Theater is the one I definitely want to mention. They have sensory-friendly accommodations, do lots of children's theater and other all types of of other shows. Lincoln Center has something called Relaxed Performances, which I think is like the sweetest name.
Speaker: So it's just relaxed. It's like, everybody chill. We're all here. Let's just make this easy. So they do take make some modifications for those shows. that. There is a company called the New York City Children's Theater, who offers all sorts of main stage productions, but also sensory friendly productions that are geared specifically to students on the spectrum, children on the spectrum and other or related conditions. New World Stages is one. They do sensory Saturdays.
Speaker: They have the gazillion bubble show, which is super fun. New World Stages has like a bunch of little theaters within a bigger space. It's a really cool space if you haven't been to it. And no I've never been there. Have you seen the gazillion bubble show? I have seen it. And it is a must take. If you have kids under, I'd say like 12. I got to take my younger too. I got to get there.
Speaker: That's called Sensory Saturday. So check them out. And the other one is actually New York City Ballet. If you have a child who's interested in dance and movement, maybe they don't want the singing. Maybe they don't want the talking. They just want the visual. They have they have some modifications and special events also at the New York City Ballet. So definitely any or all of those you may want to check out.
Speaker: Okay, that sounds great. All right, so let's talk a little bit about maybe people, we've talked about this before, want to build up to that experience, right? You kind of mentioned that before, stepping stones. A lot of people think, I just got to start with Broadway because that's the way to go, but it's really not. So what other theater experiences, you've mentioned some, but maybe here in New York for our local listeners or in other areas might be a better fit to start with to work up to that Broadway experience? Yes, I lived this personally because it was my goal to take my son, obviously, to see a Broadway show. And my son having ADHD, I knew that I was definitely going to have to to build him to get to that point. And now, fun fact, it is a tradition with us. We go for every birthday to see something in the city together. Oh, I love that. You guys started with Aladdin, right? We started with Aladdin. That was our first one. So, you know, and he's already talking about what is what the next one might be. Oh. Oh, that's great. So this one is super important. People don't talk about this. I definitely want to say.
Speaker: Think about an accommodation your child might have in the classroom. So preferential seating might be one on their IEP, where they need to maybe be closer to the teacher because they might get distracted if they're far away. You want to talk about maintaining engagement with whatever they're doing or seeing. So I'm sorry to say, because the closer you are to the stage on Broadway, if it's we're talking about Broadway, the more expensive the tickets are. But if you're going to do this once a year or once ever,
Speaker: Get splurge for the seats that are closer. Your child is small. They're shorter. might not be able to see over the people front of them, which also brings me to call ahead and ask if they have booster seats, ask if they have booster seats. And if they don't. You grab a stack of your coats, you shove them under your kid and you just prop them up as much as you can. And if there's that's, I have done it. have, I folded like our coats and I put them under my son. So, so he could see up and certainly if they're smaller, you could put them on your lap, but think about their closeness to the stage. And do they have a direct sight line to the stage? Because if they don't, doesn't matter what their needs are or aren't. They're already going to be disengaged because they can't see. it. They need to be able to see it. Think about things like having an accessible seat on an aisle if you can. If you do need to make a quick getaway or a quick exit for a break, try for an aisle seat so you don't have to like climb over people's legs and You should, if you can, again, wait for a scene to either end or wait for a scene transition if you can do that versus like in the middle of a big number. But hey, sometimes you got to go when you have to go. But wait for like what we would call like a scenic transition where it's shifting to something else or maybe the lights are dimming or something like that.
Speaker: Think about the lines, right? Waiting in lines. We call it like, you could have like a line kit or like an intermission kit where they have something small to play with, to look at. You could do like an eye spy kind of thing. You don't want to be lugging around anything big in the city. So it's got to be something that fits in your pocket.
Speaker: But, you know, some kind of thing that your child will be interested in in those waiting moments. And then just like get them interested in the show before they go. Have them listen to videos, watch videos, have them watch behind the scenes videos, how they what they're doing behind the scenes. That might be interesting for a child to see how things are made or how those special effects happen. So those would be definitely some some planning ahead tips.
Speaker: Okay. Are you okay if we skip ahead to our quick tips round? Yes. Skip away. okay So the first Broadway show I might recommend to a hesitant family is?
Speaker: One that they're going to be interested in. One that's appropriate for their age level. One that's appropriate for something that is just going to engage them. You know your kid.
Speaker: Okay. Parents should remember that it's okay to... It's okay to take a break if you have to take a break. It's okay that if the first go around doesn't work, get it back on the horse and try again and find what works.
Speaker: I love that suggestion. The magic of live theater is... It is something that cannot be compared to any other art form in this world. And it is something everyone should have an opportunity to experience.
Speaker: That's right. Everybody should get the experience. Okay. Now I'm going to ask you our signature question. You're a mom. You're an educator.
Speaker: You're a mentor. What is one thing that you wish more parents knew I wish that they knew about what their local communities are doing in theater.
Speaker: I wish they patronized and supported those theaters. It is very important to support local live theater and theater education and just go and see what your community has to offer because that is also going to give your child an experience and exposure that maybe other kids don't have. And it's it's something, like I said, that should be accessible to everybody.
Speaker: Let's just do a little shout out here, Erica, if you don't mind just about some local theaters in our area or maybe some of the great work that you're doing and where people can see you if you're performing.
Speaker: Absolutely. So if your region is Long Island, we are jam packed with all sorts of theater and sensory friendly theater. Theater three out in Port Jefferson does an amazing, amazing job.
Speaker: of creating those experiences for students. And I believe the tickets are actually even free, which is incredible. I know CM Performing Arts Center in Oakdale does it. I know Gateway Playhouse does it. So all you need to do is just kind of Google what's in your area and find out what they're doing. But on Long Island, we're jam-packed. The TILIS Center does sensory-friendly programs. all sorts of places. So you just get out there and don't sleep on the Long Island Children's Museum because A, they have a theater within the museum and they do- That's incredible. I love that. They do children's theater and they do sensory friendly children's theater. That to me is like a must see if you're on Long Island. And that of course, if you haven't been to that museum, it's Hands on, it's phenomenal. It's such a great, great, great place. So those are some places like off the top of my head, I would say definitely give a look to if you're on the Long Island region. And if you are on the Long Island region, shameless plug, on August 1st and 2nd, I will be performing in a Kander and Ebb Cabaret, which will be at the John Philip Sousa Banshell in the heart of Port Washington, right on the water. It's free.
Speaker: You bring your lawn, you bring your lawn chair, you bring some noshes and you get to enjoy some super talented local Long Island performers singing some of your favorite Kander and Ebb songs. And for those of you who don't know Kander and Ebb, I'm sure if I say Chicago, Cabaret, shows like that, now you probably are like, oh okay. So it's called All That Jazz and it'll be a lot of fun. So if you're around, come check us out for sure.
Speaker: Oh, that's great. That's ah probably a really cool theater or performing center. I've never been there. Right on the water? It's right on the water. It's an outside. They call it a band shell. So sometimes they'll have like symphonic bands or orchestras or rock bands that perform there. And you you cannot beat the view. We were rehearsing yesterday and I was like, oh my God, I couldn't stop looking at the water. I was getting distracted. So beautiful. The boats coming in and It's nice. its It's kind of, it gives you that like outdoor Shakespeare vibe, you know, like experiencing theater outside like that. It has just a nice element that you don't get when you're sitting inside and you can move around freely. Great, especially for kids with need. Something like that is great. Yeah, that outdoor experience. Yeah, you know, even like outdoor live music and stuff like that. that's it's
Speaker: That's wonderful because you can very easily take a little walking break if you need to and No one's going to think twice about it. so Well, Erica, thank you so much for sharing your expertise today, your professional expertise, your personal experience, your performing experience. I mean, I could have talked to you about this for probably an hour and a half, and we're probably going to have you back on again because I also was just thinking as you were talking, like,
Speaker: maybe like talking a little bit about Shakespeare for some of our older kids. So I think there's so much amazing stuff we could talk about. But but anyways, thank you again for being here and sharing with us. And we were so happy to have you. Good luck in your performance. And know hopefully we'll be able to see you in more shows coming up soon.
Speaker: I hope so too. Thank you. Thank you for having me. This was awesome. For families listening, I hope this conversation encourages you to consider theater as part of your next New York City adventure or as an adventure closer to home.
Speaker: Sensory-friendly performances and thoughtful preparation can open the door to an incredible family experience, both for you and your child. And remember, success doesn't always mean sitting perfectly through an entire show.
Speaker: It may simply mean taking that first step and trying something new. Travel doesn't have to look like anyone else's version to be meaningful. Meet your kids where they are, adjust when needed, and keep wandering without limits. You've got this.
Speaker: If this episode resonated with you, please follow or subscribe to the show and maybe share it with another parent who might benefit. We'd love to hear from you, feedback, questions, places you'd like us to cover on the show. You can also find us at Instagram at family travel that supports.
Speaker: There we share tips, info on upcoming episodes and ask for a listener input. We also have a monthly email newsletter and a free resource library. Check out the link in our bio on Instagram or reach out to me directly via email.
Speaker: And disclaimer, this podcast is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not to be considered medical advice for any patient. Thanks for listening and we'll see you next time.
