Music for Autism Embarks on Exciting New Partnership with Children’s Museum of Manhattan
On Monday, June 8, Music for Autism made our debut as a new partner of the Children’s Museum of Manhattan (CMOM)! We were so pleased to be invited to be a part of CMOM’s programming that takes place in conjunction with the Mickey Mantle School. As a part of this special program, students on the autism spectrum are invited into the museum once a week for a unique learning experience. The aim of this program is to allow the students to become comfortable and familiar with the exhibits at a time when the museum is not open to the public. After the program has concluded the hope is that they are able to visit the museum during regular opening hours as they have been adequately prepared and sensitized to the experience. Joined by artists from several recent Broadway shows including M4A Spotlight Artist, Pippin and The Last Ship‘s Sonny Paladino, Matilda‘s Marisa Kennedy, Sister Act‘s Jeremy Gaston, Billy Elliot‘s Danielle Hollitz, and versatile vocalist Emily Hecht, Music for Autism had the distinct honor of being able to hold a concert at the program’s concluding celebration.
Performing in CMOM’s brand new interactive exhibition space, “Frolic!”, Sonny, Marisa, Jeremy, Danielle, and Emily belted out old Broadway favourites and kept the audience in stitches with new and hilarious material as well. Their upbeat and engaging selections ensured that at no time was there someone not dancing! Megan Swanby, CMOM’s Manager of Community Outreach and Internships, wrote to us afterwards that teachers were already requesting we come back next year, and that she hasn’t seen the students ever enjoy themselves so much, “dancing and following along!”
We had a blast with CMOM and hope to follow up this successful event with many more public concerts in the future – just watch this space!
