Feature Issue on Loneliness and People with Intellectual, Developmental, and Other Disabilities

When we were teenagers, we often hung out together at home with friends. I (Marcus) was the older brother, and my friends and I would crack jokes with Isaiah and goof around. When my friends and I weren’t around, though, our mother told me Isaiah, who has autism, would say he was bored.

It was a time in his life when he lacked access to the means of making friends that many people enjoy and it was my parents’ first indication that Isaiah wouldn’t be content to stay home and immerse himself in his hobbies. Like most people, he wanted friends, and Mom began to pursue avenues in which he could develop friendships.

Today, Isaiah enjoys a life full of social engagement. He has maintained a core group of friends for the better part of two decades who go to the movies, attend social events such as local dances, put on theatrical productions, and have gone on vacations together. His daily life is a rebuke of the misrepresentation that most individuals with autism are “loners” and enjoy being reclusive.

I (Isaiah) am not bored now. I am happy when I’m with my friends and performing in plays. Right now, I’m working on a role in The Lion King. My friend Michelle and our other friends hang out and our other friends hang out together a lot.

Socially cohesive environments for individuals with autism typically do not form organically. It takes a level of commitment from family, friends, and allies in the autism community to lay the framework. To begin the process, our mother reached out to an agency that develops life plans for individuals with autism and/or intellectual disability. Over dinner at a local restaurant, our parents organized a team that included a representative from the agency, family members, and school personnel.

They emphasized looking beyond the perceived barriers of autism and focusing on educational, employment, and social needs. They left the meeting with the understanding that the most important need that can catalyze the growth for the others was the development of friendships.

A school official on the team quickly identified a potential friend, and he came over to our house for hang outs regularly. There were frequent trips to the movies, amusement parks, and social events.

From that one friendship, other individuals with autism began to join the fold and created a close social circle. Our mother, a group of parents, and I (Marcus) spearheaded multiple efforts to foster social growth for our loved ones living with autism.

It began with “hip-hop nights” on Fridays. A group of friends went to a local studio for dance lessons, followed by an afterparty at our house with several families. Parents would begin discussing avenues they could pursue to capitalize on the creative expression happened during their sessions at the studio. They began to create a framework for what would become Spectrum Productions Inc.

Spectrum is a nonprofit theatre organization in Fall River, Massachusetts that stages local productions in which the main roles are fully cast by individuals with autism.

We are located in Fall River’s downtown district in the Creative Class building, thanks to help from our dedicated parents and volunteers. Thanks to the generosity of our community partners, local individuals with autism have a space where they can not only express themselves creatively but engage meaningfully with each other.

Isaiah Ferro played Pinocchio in Spectrum’s 2024 production of Shrek: The Musical.

Many of the actors come to Spectrum Productions with theatre experience but have often been relegated to background ensemble work or even cast as inanimate objects. Spectrum not only rejects these limitations, we work to hone the incredible gifts that are often intrinsic with individuals with autism, such as high-level memorization and unique imagination so that they can reach their creative apex.

Our first production was The Jungle Book. We purchased the rights for the play, then began casting the roles, designing the costumes, and practicing the songs and the scenes in the play. These tasks are completed with the help of a professional vocalist and professional costume designer.

The production was successful, and we received attention from local agencies and parents who were looking to immerse themselves in the environment created by the Spectrum volunteers, instructors, and actors. The program grew, and we secured space at the Creative Class building, which provided a space for the actors to meet, socialize, and engage meaningfully in their artistic growth. We produced Shrek, The Musical and put on four shows over the span of two weeks in the spring of 2024. Every show was performed in front of a sold-out crowd and always ended in raucous applause.

One of our biggest achievements was empowering one of our actors, Luke Belmore, to write and produce a remake of the Christmas classic Santa Claus is Coming to Town, which, despite its popularity, had not been officially adapted for the theatre. Like Shrek, the play was well received during its four sold-out shows in the heart of the holiday season.

We discovered that the theatre is an optimal environment for friendships to grow due to the collaboration required to put on a musical production, and the empowerment the actors feel from being free to fully express themselves. Within and outside of Spectrum, they enjoy a socially life that is joyful and robust.

After over a decade of diligent work by our actors and allies, Spectrum’s success is not just a testament to the limitless creative capabilities of individuals with autism, but also to their capacity for creating life-long social bonds with their peers.