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Disability and Accessibility

How can we make every aspect of theatre practice and participation accessible to people of all abilities? Disability aesthetics, accessibility measures for artists and audience members, and work created by artists with disabilities are all covered here. A great place to start is the 2019 series The Future of Theatre is Accessible, curated by Talleri McRae and Mickey Rowe, or you can dive into Unsettling Dramaturgy’s panel Praxis Sessions for Virtual Collaboration: Cripping Practice or videos from the Neurodiversity Matters Conference. To learn more about HowlRound’s goals and standards for accessibility, you can go here.

The Latest

Cultural Mobility Forum 2024
Video
Cultural Mobility Forum 2024
Join the livestream of the third Cultural Mobility Forum hosted by On the Move member Wales Arts International.
Thursday 25 April 2024
We Can’t Build an Equitable Theatre While Ignoring COVID
Essay
We Can’t Build an Equitable Theatre While Ignoring COVID
by Taylor Leigh Lamb
21 March 2024
Aerial Performance in a Wheelchair 
Podcast
Aerial Performance in a Wheelchair 
by Tjaša Ferme, Laurel Lawson
7 March 2024
Performance of And Suddenly I Disappear: The Singapore 'd' Monologues
Video

Performance of And Suddenly I Disappear: The Singapore 'd' Monologues

Kaite O'Reilly

Saturday 26 May 2018
Singapore

Unlimited in association with Kaite O'Reilly presented And Suddenly I Disappear: The Singapore 'd' Monologues by Kaite O'Reilly livestreaming from the National Museum of Singapore on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 26 May 2018 at 2:30 p.m. UTC +8 (Singapore) / 8:30 a.m. UTC +2 (Berlin) / 7:30 a.m. UTC +1 (London) / 06:30 UTC +0 / 4:30 p.m. UTC +10 (Sydney) / 2:30 a.m. UTC -4 (New York). 

A Work of the Body
Essay

A Work of the Body

Deconstructing Preconceived Notions of Disability and Dance in Piece by Piece

29 April 2018

Emily White writes about Rebeccah Simone Bogue’s Piece by Piece, which was presented as a work in progress in New York City in February 2018.

Coney Island’s Fantastical History
Essay

Coney Island’s Fantastical History

What Love Never Dies Leaves Out

1 April 2018

Kitty Drexel writes about the failure of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never Dies to accurately represent the performers with disabilities that made New York City's Coney Island famous.

Aligning Artistic Practice with “Healthstyle”
Essay

Aligning Artistic Practice with “Healthstyle”

14 March 2018

For the fourth installment of the Chronic Theatremaker series, Sara Brookner interviews playwright Lisa Kenner Grissom about living with lupus and learning to balance her health practice with her writing practice. 

Cripping the Crip—Is It Time to Reclaim Richard III?
Essay

Cripping the Crip—Is It Time to Reclaim Richard III?

21 February 2018

Kaite O’Reilly considers how Richard III has been portrayed on stage, the alignment of atypical embodiment with evil and suffering, and her inspiration with The Llanarth Group to create a new staging of Richard III.

Hastened by Technology, Hindered by Public Attitudes
Essay

Hastened by Technology, Hindered by Public Attitudes

7 February 2018

Jonathan Mandell reports on the accessibility panel at BroadwayCon, which explained the forthcoming changes aiming toward a future theatre seamlessly accessible for everyone, all the time.

Questioning the Casting and the Hump
Essay

Questioning the Casting and the Hump

29 January 2018

Cassidy Dawn Graves writes about Thomas Ostermeier’s production of Richard III and questions why we still see able-bodied actors playing characters with disabilities.

Autistic Actors, “Autistic Archetypes,” and Acting, in General
Essay

Autistic Actors, “Autistic Archetypes,” and Acting, in General

23 January 2018

Sam Ethan Rubin writes about being an actor on the autism spectrum.

At the Crossroads of Disability and Theatre at Mixed Blood
Essay

At the Crossroads of Disability and Theatre at Mixed Blood

18 December 2017

Jack Reuler discusses nearly two decades of incorporating work about, for, or with people with disabilities or on issues of disability at Mixed Blood Theatre.

Chronic Theatremakers
Essay

Chronic Theatremakers

Confronting Denial with Robbie McCauley

3 December 2017

Sara Brookner talks to playwright and performer Robbie McCauley about her one-woman show Sugar, and the power of sharing our stories.

Challenging the Narrative of Disability On Stage
Essay

Challenging the Narrative of Disability On Stage

27 November 2017

Playwright and actor Tim Collingwood reflects on the workshop production of his play Depth Perception, a piece based on his experiences with Aspergers, and why he thinks the theatre can be a safe space for people of all abilities.

The Power of Authenticity
Essay

The Power of Authenticity

Disability On Stage and Off in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

22 November 2017

Talleri McRae interviews actors Mickey Rowe and Landon G. Woodson from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time about casting actors with disabilities play disabled characters, and the power of inclusive casting. 

Why Would We Move? Musings on Movement Practice and Training
Essay

Why Would We Move? Musings on Movement Practice and Training

9 November 2017

Movement director and professor Yo-El Cassell reflects on how movement should help people access playfulness and joy, regardless of ability.  

Theatre-ing While Disabled—Audience Edition
Essay

Theatre-ing While Disabled—Audience Edition

7 November 2017

Kate Langsdorf finishes the series by reflecting on her experience attending different shows as an audience member in Los Angeles, California.

Chronic Theatremakers
Essay

Chronic Theatremakers

The Importance of Social Goods and Sharing Your Story

25 October 2017

Dramaturg Sara Brookner interviews playwright Trip Venturella about his experiences as a theatremaker with epilepsy.

Caregivers on Stage
Essay

Caregivers on Stage

Mary Jane, The Treasurer, The Cost of Living

5 October 2017

Jonathan Mandell looks at three plays about caregiving on stage recently in New York.

Sustainability in Inclusive Theatre
Essay

Sustainability in Inclusive Theatre

27 September 2017

Clarie Glubiak talks with several theatre companies at the forefront of the inclusive theatre industry asking about sustainability.

poster for red theater chicago's accessibility auditions
Access Auditions for Performers who are d/Deaf and Disabled
Essay

Access Auditions for Performers who are d/Deaf and Disabled

15 August 2017

Aaron Sawyer and Terri Hudson reflect on what they learned from the Access Auditions, and offer tangible steps theatres can take to become more accessible to performers who are d/Deaf and disabled.

Creative Access
Essay

Creative Access

Accommodations for Professional Performers with Disabilities

11 August 2017

Talleri McRae summarizes a breakout session she co-led at the 2017 Theatre Communications Group Annual Conference.

The Cultural Apartheid of Disability
Essay

The Cultural Apartheid of Disability

A Conversation between Judith Smith and John Killacky with Resources and Tips

2 August 2017

A conversation between Judith Smith and John Killacky with resources and tips at the Americans for the Arts 2017 Annual Conference, Friday June 16, 2017.

Under the Big Top
Essay

Under the Big Top

Creating Multi-Sensory Work for Children with Autism

19 July 2017

Samantha Mueller, a theatre practitioner who works with the special needs community, talks about Seesaw Theatre which creates multi-sensory work for children with autism.

The Necessity of Diverse Voices in Theatre Regarding Disability and Difference
Essay

The Necessity of Diverse Voices in Theatre Regarding Disability and Difference

2 July 2017

Kaite O’Reilly addresses how reimagining disability can open up creative possibilities on stage in content, aesthetics, and form.

The Fashion Accessibility Project from the Epicenter Community
Video

The Fashion Accessibility Project from the Epicenter Community

Saturday 24 June 2017
Boston, MA, United States

Epicenter Community and ArtsEmerson presented the Fashion Accessibility Project livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound.TV network Saturday 24 June at 6:00 p.m. EDT (Boston) / 5:00 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 3:00 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles).

Kevin Kling
Essay

Kevin Kling

On the Road with the Minnesota Bard

20 June 2017

Minnesota’s favorite storyteller: Kevin Kling.

Re-membering the Canon
Essay

Re-membering the Canon

Sam Gold’s The Glass Menagerie

9 May 2017

Ryan Donovan considers the critical reception of casting an actor with a disability in the current Broadway revival of Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie.