Advertisement Movie theater rented for those with special needs By Lauren DiTullio/The Patriot Ledger Share Shares Copy Link Copy

It started with a Duxbury mom and her 23-year-old autistic son being jeered out of a movie theater because he was noisy.It will end next week when an acquaintance will rent an entire theater to give those with special needs the chance to watch a movie without the pressure of remaining quiet and in their seats, The Patriot Ledger reported.Emily Colson of Duxbury, author of "Dancing with Max," a memoir about her autistic son, wrote about her movie theater experience in a blog that gained attention from readers all over the country.Colson said answering cruelty with cruelty "doesn't get anybody anywhere," and she feels blessed that Renee Walston, who attends Pembroke's North River Community Church with Colson is turning a bad experience into a chance to do good.Walston is renting the Regal Cinema in Kingston for a showing of "Muppets Most Wanted." Close to 300 kids, including many with special needs, will attend.Walston said that when she read Colson's blog describing her theater experience, she thought of her three children, all under the age of 5, enduring the same treatment."As Christians, we're supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves," she said. "I just thought that if it were my child, I would have to find a way to make this right for him."Colson's blog, posted in December, described how Max became frightened, as he often does, during the previews at the start of the movie. He became loud, and others in the audience began calling out insults.When she and Max left the theater, the audience applauded.Colson said she is accustomed to outings that don't go according to plan. What bothered her, she said, is that the other patrons in the theater were so quick to lash out that she and Max didn't have time to use coping strategies they had successfully implemented many times before. "We hadn't even gotten past the previews. I know most of us, as families of children with disabilities, have all these plans in mind, but we couldn't even get there," she said. While Colson said she understands that "someone paying good money for a movie ... wants it to be quiet," she said she felt discouraged by the crowd's "ugly" attitude. "I think that we have to be intentional with inclusion," Colson said. "There are so many families (of children with special needs) that are very isolated, and there are other people that really don't have any experience with disabilities and they don't know what to do."Walston said she started by renting a 94-seat theater, the smallest possible space, because she was unsure what kind of turnout there would be. Now, the event she's calling "Movie with Max" is on the cusp of selling out a 294-seat theater. "It has been overwhelming, in a good way," she said.Colson said she is excited that families with special needs children can come together in support of each other, but she also hopes the community at large takes advantage of the screening. The amount of interest in the event has allowed Colson to see the silver lining to what happened in December. "It has generated a huge amount of conversation about our families in the community, and I'm so thankful for that," she said. The special showing of "Muppets Most Wanted" will take place at 6 p.m. on March 27 at Regal Cinema in Kingston. Limited tickets are still available, but messages of support are encouraged.For more information, Walston can be reached at moviewithmax@gmail.com.