At 11 years old, Nolan Abney hasn’t been exposed to much Shakespeare yet.

So when his mother Danita Abney signed him up for a “Shakespeare and Autism” workshop at Watkins Middle School, focused on “The Tempest,” they weren’t sure what to expect.

Nolan was quiet as he walked into the auditorium and approached the stage. But as the workshop began, it was clear that the emotions at the center of the play — joy, anger, fear, loneliness and excitement — were feelings he could understand.

As Director Kevin McClatchy and a group of volunteers taught him each acting game, Nolan jumped in with both feet, leaping into the air as the spirit Ariel and putting fellow actors into a “trance.”

His mother, who signed him up for the program to help improve his social skills was thrilled by his excitement.

“It was great, I was surprised by how engaged he was,” she said. “We will definitely be back next (time).”

Although Shakespeare and Autism workshops and classes have been a part of Ohio State University’s Department of Theatre, Film, and Media Arts since 2015, the October 28 class was a first for Licking County, said McClatchy who not only leads the Shakespeare and Autism project but also serves as the Ohio State Artist Laureate, an associate professor and the Head of Acting and Directing at OSU.

Developed in partnership with the Wexner Medical Center’s Nisonger Center and the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Shakespeare and Autism Project uses a combination of rhythm and imagination, known as the Hunter Heartbeat Method.  

Developed by British theatre artist Kelly Hunter, the Hunter Heartbeat Method has been proven to successfully improve social and communicative skills for those on the autism spectrum.

Using key words from “The Tempest” and several other plays, Hunter worked with McClatchy and a group of Ohio State teaching artists to develop a series of fun acting games that could be taught to children and teens, regardless of speaking ability or acting experience.

OSU is one of only two universities in the United States that offers the program — and until 2024, it was only available to Ohioans in the Columbus area.

Through the Ohio State Artist Laureate program, McClatchy launched a recent initiative to spread the project to other counties.

After meeting with the Licking County Board of Developmental Disabilities, he was connected with one of their longtime partners, Mackenzie Adelman, Coordinator of Student Services at Southwest Licking Schools.

After finding out more, it made perfect sense for the three organizations to put together a workshop to introduce the project to the community, she said. Students from all over Licking County were invited to participate and a group of volunteers — teachers, family members and community members — went through a day-long training to prepare to support them.

The three young actors participating in the Oct. 28 workshop worked in small groups with the volunteers. Small pieces of dialogue, music and movement were used as inspiration for games that introduced participants to characters such as Miranda and Ferdinand, Caliban and Prospero.

For Adelman, who was one of the volunteers, it was an example of inclusion at its best.

“(Kevin) brought ‘The Tempest’ to a level so everyone can understand the story, and that’s what accessibility is really all about,” she said. “With the right modifications and accommodations, anyone can access anything, including Shakespeare.”

Kandee Engel, the president of the Southwest Licking School Board went through the volunteer training and signed up her daughter Skyler, 21, to participate.

As she went through the process of learning the games, Engel said she could see the ways they were meant to help improve eye contact, confidence and expression, which can be challenging for people with autism or other disabilities that impact their communication.

Seeing the young actors open up and participate with such excitement was incredibly moving, she said.

Both she and Adelman said they hope to find a way to keep the program in Licking County so that more children and teens can have those transformational experiences.

As soon as she got on stage, Skyler was having fun, at one point exclaiming, “I am so proud of me! I am so excited.”

Playing the games alongside her daughter, Kandee said, there were so many moments of joy and connection.

“That was phenomenal. This is someone who doesn’t like to put down her electronics and she was engaging, she was singing, she was acting,” she said. “I am extremely pleased…She wants to come back!”