Scholars of Human Expression: The Experiences of Autistic Performing Arts Professionals and Attitudes of Performing Arts Employers in the UK

Background: Researchers and clinicians have long held that imagination is limited in autism. Yet it is increasingly recognised that creativity is an area of strength in many autistic people. Although creative practice such as the performing arts has not traditionally been thought of as an occupation in which autistic people would engage, our initial work in this area has revealed that there are people diagnosed as autistic and those with high levels of autistic traits working in this field. Further, autistic people and those with high levels of autistic traits reported wanting more employment support than non-autistic colleagues. We still need to establish, however, the nature of these support needs and the experiences of autistic adults in the performing arts.

Objectives: This research examined in-depth the employment experiences of autistic performing arts professionals and the attitudes and adjustments of performing arts employers who work with autistic people. We sought to better understand the challenges that autistic adults face in performing arts employment and the nature and extent of the support they require.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 18 UK-based autistic performing arts professionals (7 female, 9 male, 2 non-binary/other; mean age 33) and 19 UK-based performing arts employers (10 female, 9 male; mean age 44). Interviews with autistic professionals focused on their likes and dislikes concerning their workplaces, and if they had ever needed or would like support for their work. Employers were asked about their current knowledge of autism, whether they had any experience working with autistic people, and if they knew how or where to find support for either an autistic employee or themselves if needed.

Results: Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using thematic analysis. Autistic performing arts professionals described facing challenges in the workplace. These centred on anxiety, colleagues’ misconceptions, and feeling obliged to network despite finding high levels of socialisation stressful. Professionals also spoke about how autistic traits benefitted their work: being able to focus on tasks for a long time and work in precise detail, and how being autistic enabled them to approach their work from a unique perspective. A few autistic professionals had access to support, but the majority felt that there was not enough, if any, support available and highlighted many ways in which they could be better supported. Performing arts employers varied in their experiences of working with autistic people, but they consistently identified that every autistic person has different needs and requires individualised support. Many employers had limited knowledge about autism-specific support or relied on other professionals to provide it. They indicated a willingness to learn more, but were concerned that there was little time for training.

Conclusions: The results paint a picture of meaningful contributions of autistic people within the performing arts yet a number of challenges with which to contend. Crucially, these findings allow us to understand the current unmet support needs of autistic performing arts professionals, and make best-practice recommendations in this area. Future research should develop and evaluate employment-based support for these professionals.