The Big Umbrella Festival will return to Lincoln Center this April, welcoming kids, teens, adults, and their families for three weekends of Choose-What-You-Pay programming, designed with and for neurodiverse audiences. This year's festival weekends include April 4–6, 9–13, and 16–20.

Launched in 2018, the Big Umbrella Festival is a large-scale performing arts festival centering audiences with autism and other developmental disabilities. Using sensory-based and interactive experiences to welcome neurodiverse individuals into the theatre, the festival is the first of its kind.

“Access to the arts for all is core to what drives our work here at Lincoln Center,” said Shanta Thake, chief artistic officer of Lincoln Center. “We are proud to continue expanding the Big Umbrella Festival, meeting neurodiverse audiences where they are and embracing a multitude of ways to engage with the arts. Our learnings from this important work continue, as we weave many of these engagement principles into our offerings year-round. We are grateful to continue this work with so many talented collaborators from around the world.” 

The 2025 festival will offer a mix of in-person, virtual, and outdoor events and installations. Tickets are available on a Choose-What-You-Pay basis, with waitlists available for select sold-out performances. Highlights for this years festival include Teatro La Plaza’s Hamlet, which reimagines Shakespeare’s timeless classic featuring a cast of Spanish-speaking actors with Down syndrome; the U.S. premiere of When the World Turns, an immersive landscape collaboration from Australia's Polyglot Theatre and England's Oily Cart; and New York's own E.P.I.C. Players season sampler, which will showcase neurodiverse artists working in New York year round.

All events are considered Relaxed Performances. Attendees can enter and leave audience spaces as needed, vocalize, and move freely, creating a "no shushing" zone. Calm spaces and visual art escapes are also available for those who struggle with crowds. Visual guides in English and Spanish can offer detailed directions, arrival instructions, and venue amenities with images. Additionally, all events are located on accessible routes with physically accessible entrances, restrooms, and seating. 

For more information, visit LincolnCenter.org/BigUmbrella.