Autism Awareness Month

How Irish Dance has helped Jude Hare overcome limitations

Autism isn’t holding him back on the big stage!

When Jude Hare was eight years old, he was the only dancer competing in the special child division at a Feis. He earned first place.

On the way home his mother, Michelle Hare, enthusiastically congratulated him.

But Jude wasn’t as excited. “I really didn’t win though, they just gave it to me,” Jude told Michelle. “I didn’t actually compete against anyone.”

Jude pictured at his first feis - he loved Irish Dance but was not happy about dancing in the "Special" competition

Jude has autism, a developmental disability that impacts a person’s social skills, communication and relationships.

Autism is a spectrum, which means that it presents differently in each person who has it. For Jude, it means he struggles with verbal communication, eye contact, transitions, sensory stimulation and change.

But it also means that he’s super smart and excels at his many hobbies, which not only include dance, but composing music, writing stories, creating costumes, making art and even learning the Japanese language.

“I really hate it when people use autism as an insult because they think that autism means you are stupid,” he says.

Jude doesn’t want to be treated differently because of his autism, so after that talk in the car with his mom, Jude left child division to compete alongside his peers. This put him two years behind the dancers in his class, but he caught up.

Pictured at his first "NON-SPECIAL" feis - Jude was much happier standing on his own in the regular feis circuit.

“There really wasn’t any challenge because I was the only one competing,” Jude says of the special child division.

Now 14, Jude is in the Preliminary Champion division with the Rochester Academy of Irish Dance in Upstate New York. He went from Prizewinner to Prelim in one year. “Because I refused to see his limitations as barriers, so did he,” Michelle says.

Irish Dance has been integral in helping Jude overcome his limitations.

“He has had to learn how to adapt, be organized, to be around people and noise and how to communicate and self-advocate,” Michelle says. “These are major challenges for any person but tenfold and then some for one on the autism spectrum.”

Jude was diagnosed with autism when he was in kindergarten, which was about the same time he began dancing.

Jude tends to “shut down” during sudden changes, Michelle says, and is easily over stimulated. This presents challenges at rehearsals, competitions and performances, which are often loud, busy and full of change. “When things get to be too much for him sensory or emotion wise, he tends to be almost absent and non-responsive,” Michelle says.

But these hurdles are made easier when judges, teachers, dancers and spectators are understanding. Michelle recalls numerous stories in which others have showed compassion to Jude.

At one Feis, Jude struggled to remember his steps, had a severe panic attack and began to shut down. On top of this, there was a schedule change. Michelle let a stagehand know, informing her that she had a dancer with autism who was struggling and confused about the schedule change.

“She instantly was compelled to help with her words of wisdom and best advice ever,” Michelle said.

The stagehand told Michelle that they were breaking for lunch before Jude’s dance, so he could go outside to get away from all the noise and stimuli. It was great advice and will always be remembered by Michelle.

“It was all he needed, and he remembered his steps for the afternoon dances and was perfectly content,” Michelle says.

“There are many times where winning at a Feis becomes less of the goal and just getting on the stage is the achievement of the day.”

At the same Feis, Michelle was approached by the grandparents of a child who competed with a different school in a different city.

They told Michelle they’ve been watching Jude over the years and were amazed by his growth. “This has happened so many times and it is always a new face in the vast crowd over the years,” Michelle says.

Pictured: Jude with his teachers at a regional Oireachtas event. He has become quite the accomplished solo and team dancer!

While Jude previously took medication to help control some of his autism, he has been medication free for almost a year. He is no longer in need of medical interventions, and many of his services provided by Jude’s school and county have been greatly reduced. Through dance, Jude has learned to adapt.

“I have learned to manage my emotions, how to be part of a team, how to be flexible, that anything can happen,” Jude says.

At a recent Feis in the fall, the stage configuration was changed to save time. This caused confusion, and Jude accidentally missed a dance.

The stagehand asked the judge if Jude could still dance. While the judge agreed, Michelle feared this change would cause him to shut down and become emotional. But Jude agreed to do the dance. “He showed us all that he can adapt and be okay with it,” Michelle says. “That moment was a pivotal moment for us all.”

After the competition, Michelle let the stagehand know how monumental that experience had been. “We both agreed that of all the medals and trophies he may have taken home that day, that moment was the best accomplishment of all,” Michelle says.

April is National Autism Awareness Month.

In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the 1 in every 59 people have autism. Currently, boys are approximately 4.5 times more likely to have an autism diagnosis than girls of the same age. National Autism Awareness Month not only promotes awareness of the disability but also promotes inclusion and acceptance.

To learn more, visit autism-society.org.

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