Onstage and Behind the Scenes: Autistic Performance and Advocacy

Abstract

For many autistic performers in arts and entertainment, the stage can be an important site of self-advocacy and creative expression. Whereas everyday social interactions may be unpredictable, being onstage can allow autistic performers to work from a script and anticipate audience responses. This article explores the affordances and challenges of performance for young autistic adults in Canada through interviews with four autistic performers (two singers and two stand-up comics). While solo performance was the focus, participants discussed the creative employment of diverse media platforms, from the stage to screenwriting and children’s books, and emphasized the need for autistic people to be involved in all creative realms. This research follows a Critical Disability Studies (CDS) framework which challenges deficit models of autism (McGuire, 2016), “supercrip” tropes (Clare, 2015, p. 2), and narratives of overcoming autism (Cheng, 2017). While one participant noted being uncomfortable with the sense that they were a source of inspiration for non-autistic audiences, each found it encouraging that autistic audiences relate to their work and might be motivated to participate in similar forms of self-advocacy; in particular, they noted the value of performance in building confidence. As previous CDS literature is wary of disability as spectacle (Darke, 1994), this research provides insight into how young autistic adults use their work onstage and behind the scenes to promote and perform self-advocacy.