Accessibility

What is Audio Description?

Audio Description is for blind or visually impaired people who enjoy visiting the theatre, assistance in sharing the visual aspects of the programme to help them to follow the plot.

An Audio Describer gives a live description of the characters, their expressions, actions, costumes and the sets, which is relayed to patrons over personal headsets. This happens unobtrusively between the lines so that it doesn’t intrude on the dialogue.

To compliment this we also offer pre-performance touch tours. These give patrons the chance to visit the theatre with the Audio Describer before the performance to experience the stage area and to hear details of scenery, props and sometimes there's also an opportunity to meet the actors.

Tickets for people escorting Blind and visually impaired patrons are free.

Please contact the Box Office on 020 7582 7680 or bookings@ovalhouse.com to reserve seats, head sets and pre-show touch tour.

Guide dogs welcome.

What is BSL?

British Sign Language (BSL) is the first or preferred language of many Deaf people in the UK. The language involves movement of the hands, body, face and head.

During BSL interpreted performances, an interpreter will stand on or at the side of the stage, in a place clearly visible to the audience, and interpret the spoken and heard aspects of the show for Deaf and hearing impaired patrons who are British Sign Language users. Sometimes the Interpreter may also be integrated into the show, as a character, as in our forthcoming production Counting The Ways.

Please contact the Box Office on 020 7582 7680 or bookings@ovalhouse.com to reserve your seats (if you have a preference of where to sit, please let our Box office staff know)

What are Captioned performances?

At a captioned performance words are displayed on a screen at the same time as they are spoken or sung by an actor, thus giving people with a hearing impairment the chance to understand everything. The process is similar to subtitling. It aims to offer Deaf and hard of hearing people the same experience, as far as possible, as a hearing audience.

Captioned performances are not just helpful for Deaf and hearing impaired people, they may also benefit people whose hearing is just not as sharp as it used to be or who have, for example, tinnitus, as well as anyone who has difficulty following strong accents, students who are studying the text of a play and foreign tourists and people whose first language is not English.

Introducing our Video-link Auditorium

For some time now we've been striving to make our upstairs theatre wheelchair accessible. Although installing a lift has proved an impossibility, we are pleased to announce a creative solution. The Video-Link Auditorium is a specially adapted ground floor room with a large screen linked by live video relay to our upstairs theatre, giving people with limited mobility the choice to still see upstairs shows. Audiences using this facilty are also offered the opportunity to meet members of the Company and cast before the show.

Tickets to broadcasts in the Video-Link Auditorium are free, and if you’re interested in booking a special viewing for a group this can be arranged on request, subject to availability.