Comedic Timing
TEEN FINDS HER VOICE IN IMPROV
an improv program at The Naples Players for students with Autism. Emily wasn’t sure what to expect when she walked into her first Friday evening session with Craig Price, the theater’s Director of Community Education and Wellness. But Craig, who has worked with students with sensory processing disorders and Asperger’s, knew exactly how to put Emily and others at ease.
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rom the time she was young, Emily Buenafuente loved telling jokes. Humor came naturally for her, and she was always thrilled to have an audience to laugh along at the punchline. But as she grew up, Emily’s disabilities caused her to get picked on in school. The 16-year-old has Autism and making friends became difficult. “She has a lot of trouble socializing with peers. Adults, she gets,” said Lisa Delgado, Emily’s mother. “She was having a very hard time in school.” Emily retreated into her shell. But then Delgado moved her family from New Jersey to Naples a few years ago. For the first year, Delgado home-schooled her daughter so she didn’t have to start a new school in the middle of the year. Soon after, she learned about
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TNP BACKSTAGE
“Craig is just so awesome with these kids and it’s wonderful that he’s doing this not just for any teenager but also for teenagers with issues,” Delgado said. Soon, Emily was getting the hang of games like Gibberish, where kids jump out from a back row and tell a joke based on suggestions from audience members. Improv is a perfect exercise for students with Autism because there’s no wrong answers, and playing off of other actors in a scene helps kids to read social cues and emotions. Being silly is encouraged, and interacting with other students with Autism puts everyone on even footing. For two years, Emily attended weekly sessions with the group thanks to a scholarship from TNP. Without that scholarship, Delgado said that as a home care nurse, she couldn’t afford to send her daughter to the program.
EARLY SPRING 2020
