District News
Big Umbrella Festival 2018
Mar 28, 2018
Coming to Lincoln Center in April of 2018, the Big Umbrella Festival is the world's first month-long festival dedicated to arts programs for children on the autism spectrum and their families.
The festival, also honoring Autism Awareness Month, is a new and special part of Lincoln Center Education's longtime commitment to making art accessible in all forms to diverse audiences. Big Umbrella's core objective is to enrich the lives of children on the autism spectrum through thoughtfully curated, inclusive art meant to educate and engage with each audience member.
Spanning Saturday, April 14 to Sunday, May 6, 2018, the festival will include interactive theater, music performances, and more across Lincoln Center's campus. It will also feature a symposium and professional development opportunities for artists, arts professionals, and presenters interested in this work, with the aim of bringing the community together around the topic of neurodiversity.
On April 14, the festival's free Kickoff Event will begin at 10:30am at the David Rubenstein Atrium with a Festival Welcome followed by a performance at 11:00am by the Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter (and Winter's Eve alum!), Brady Rymer and the Little Band That Could, who will play rootsy, accordian-laced pop and rock tunes for a relaxed Saturday morning show. At 2:00pm the Actionplay Chorus, made up of young performers on the autism spectrum, will perform their own original music for audiences. The festival continues with more engaging events through April into early May.
Visit the Big Umbrella Festival website for a calendar of events and more information about tickets and opportunities.
Photo credit: Buatti-Ramos Photography