Acting class helps autistic kids interact - Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

Acting can be a tough craft to master, but one local class is giving some special students a chance to take on that challenge.  When you're acting, it's not unusual to lose yourself in the role.  In this case, the actors are using characters to find out just how great they can really be.

Class time at the Green Room Actor's Lounge can sometimes sound and look a little weird.  But as any good actor knows, there's a purpose.  

"The first goal is to get them to interact socially with one another, and to be comfortable in social settings," said Ladonness Belle, one of the acting

teachers at the Green Room.  "But I also want them to be comfortable enough in their skin that they'll be comfortable enough to perform."

Social interaction might sound like a strange goal, but these are no ordinary actors.  They're actors with autism.  

Shannon Nash brought the unique acting classes to Atlanta with her business partner and actress Terri J. Vaughn.  They wanted a place where people with

autism could use the stage to overcome social inhibitions.  Bernice Brown says it has worked with her 19-year-old son, Antonio, who was born premature.

"He was born with water on the brain, fluid on his lungs, three holes in his heart, kidney stones, a double hernia, and by the age of 2, was diagnosed

with autism," Brown said of her son.  

But Brown said the classes are working wonders for her son.  She says he's speaking louder, and he has become more vocal.  She also says he's getting

better at expressing his emotions, and he's able to control his temper to work in a group.

Belle says the skill set they're learning is no different than typically-developing actors.  She hopes to train them to act on any stage, but the most

important role they're learning to play is being their true selves.  

The students are not only being taught all aspects of acting.  They're also learning about other areas of the business, like production and lighting. 

For more information, click on the links below:

The Green Room Actors Lounge

Actors for Autism