CityLife

A show for everyone at the Library

IN WITH A SHOUT: Saphron Newman of Cheadle Hulme High School enjoys the theatre

THERE are many reasons why someone might or might not appreciate the theatre but having a disability doesn't need to be one of them.

Changing perceptions always takes time, but a group of youngsters who recently attended a special needs workshop at The Library Theatre realised the theatre caters for them as much as anyone else.

The group of hearing-impaired eight to 14-year-olds have been studying Great Expectations and were given an insight into different aspects of the Dickens classic by director, Roger Haines.

In addition to the school's interpreters the theatre had two British Sign Language interpreters, Mavis McCue and Antony Redshaw.

The group discovered all about what goes on behind the scenes from costumes and make-up to music and stage-fighting.

"It helps bring the show to life," said Mavis. "It can be hard encouraging deaf people to come for the first time because they think it's not for them, but once they've been they usually want to come back."

And there was a ringing endorsement from one youngster who enthused as the curtain came down: "That was great!"

The Library Theatre has a range of access performances for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or partially sighted, all of which are designed to ensure that everyone can enjoy the productions.

Here's what to expect:

Audio-Described
This is for those who are blind or visually impaired. Anne Hornsby was one of the first to offer the service, starting at the Octagon Theatre, Bolton 20 years ago.

"Before the show we offer a touch tour - people have a walk around the stage and feel the props and costumes. Then we give an introduction where we talk about the set, costumes and characters.

"Once the play starts I'll weave the description around the dialogue so I'm not talking at the same time as the actors. The customers listen through a headset."

Anne describes anything visual happening onstage such as facial expressions, what people are wearing, doors opening and closing, or if there is a fight.

There is a lot of preparation involved, watching the show several times to create a script that works with the speed of the show. However, because a live performance can change slightly every night, Anne needs to do her describing live too.

"As a sighted audience you are taking in lots of information - once you put it into words you realise you haven't got the time so you've got to prioritise."

British Sign Language
Mavis McCue has been a qualified sign language interpreter for 19 years. Again a lot of preparation is involved - before a performance Mavis reads the script and watches a DVD of the production several times.

During the show she stands at the side of the stage and the theatre designates seats from which she can be easily seen.

"Obviously the more visual a play, the better for deaf people," she says. "Every year I organise a group of about 30 deaf people from Warrington. Many of them would never have thought of going to the theatre. You feel as if you've done a good job when you see them enjoying it and being involved - they talk about it for ages afterwards."

Captioned
This involves the words spoken being displayed on LCD screens either side of the stage. Stephen Kelly is an in-house captioner at The Library Theatre. His job is to reformat the script into a suitable format for captioning.

"It's exactly the same as surtext used for opera," Stephen explains.

"Most of the work is done as preparation before the performance. I have to make sure that the captions follow the speed of the actors and the sound cues that take place. You have to be there because if an actor skips or jumps a line or if there is a technical fault you have to be able to relay that."

The Library Theatre is running another special needs workshop on Wednesday, January 7 at 10.15am. For details of all access performances at the theatre call 0161 236 7110 or go to librarytheatre.com.