The process and experience of booking a theatre ticket can make the difference between a positive or a negative theatre experience for any patron, but particularly for someone who faces additional communication barriers and who wants to make use of a specific service. Being able to book the right seat, with a good view of … Read more At Point of Sale
What do patrons say they want? “A theatre experience approximating what it used to be like for me.” “To be able to enjoy the show like anyone else.” People with sensory impairments think a good theatregoing experience is one where they feel they have had an equal experience, the same as everyone else. Captioning makes … Read more What motivates them?
It can be quite difficult to get coverage about captioning in the mainstream media, but it’s a great way of raising general awareness if you can. What you can do … Having the following ‘hooks’ can help: Are you about to launch something new to your venue – i.e. an in-house captioning service? Do you … Read more Press and PR
As we’ve already mentioned, during the See a Voice project we ran a series of events to broaden the awareness and understanding of captioning and assisted performances. We called them ‘Discover Theatre’. What patrons said … “It was a great day – I learnt a lot.” “I’ve never been here before – everyone was very … Read more Accessible Events
Our experience has shown that not everyone who uses the captions during a performance has declared that intention at the time of booking. Some people repeat book for captioned performances but don’t identify themselves as deaf or make use of any available concessions. Some people weren’t aware it was a captioned performance until the show started … Read more Who’s using the Captions
The Data Protection Acts don’t allow us to keep information about people’s disabilities. We can keep information about their preferred communication methods and whether they are actual or potential attenders of captioned or audio described performances. The key time to collect data is at the time of booking. If your Box Office does not collect … Read more Data collection and mailing lists
Targeted information is aimed at individuals, usually who identify as deaf or disabled, and who usually have an established relationship with the venue/theatre. The benefits of creating some targeted materials are: Relevance – quick and easy access to information, saving time and effort. Cost-effective – when aimed at targeted groups. High response rate. A very … Read more Targeted information
Make sure you use the CAP logo wherever you mention captioned performances. This simple logo is a quick, visual way to highlight the service, and the more you use it alongside your definitions then the more people, both deaf and hearing, will become familiar with what it represents. Here are some of the other logos you … Read more Logos
What patrons have said … “The whole experience was so different to my usual theatre visits. The captioning made such a difference.” “I introduced a deaf friend to captioning – she hadn’t been to the theatre for 20 years.” Research commissioned by the Society of London Theatre (Access all Areas) found that potential audiences were not always … Read more Definitions
More and more people use websites now as their first point of reference. Booking tickets online for captioned performances remains an issue due to the difficulty of holding back appropriate seats with clear view of the units. You can, however, use your website to great effect to promote the captioned performances you offer as well … Read more Websites