By Andrew Stanford, Director of Inclusive Theatre, Replay Theatre Company
Theatre and Dance NI recently delivered a captioning training programme for stage managers and technicians, helping to build skills and confidence in delivering more accessible performances across Northern Ireland.
In this sector insight, Andrew Stanford, Director of Inclusive Theatre at Replay Theatre Company, reflects on his development of an embedded captioning approach through PRISM (2023), and how this work has influenced wider sector practice.
Premiering in 2023, PRISM is an inclusive theatre production by Replay Theatre Company, written by Gary Crossan and directed by me, in my role as Director of Inclusive Theatre.
One of PRISM’s greatest legacies is the show’s contribution to establishing a potentially more sustainable working model for Captioning in touring theatre. Captioning is used to display spoken dialogue as text on screens close to the stage and plays a vital role in supporting D/deaf audiences and those with English as a second language. As a pioneer of immersive inclusive strategies, I wanted PRISM to challenge the traditional working concept of ‘physical accessibility’. Typically, a touring theatre production might offer one or two captioned performances across an entire tour schedule. In many cases, Captioning simply isn’t offered. Surely, there had to be a way to fix this.
So, why are things the way they are right now? There are many reasons why touring companies choose not to offer traditional accessibility provisions, but a key barrier is affordability. Producing theatre is expensive and with the current pressures on public funding, budgets are already stretched. When accessibility costs are added, it often becomes difficult to deliver everything. The reality is that accessibility is sacrificed, not because it isn’t important, but because it isn’t always viable.
So, what’s the solution? Captioning provision is (understandably) expensive relative to typical sector rates in Northern Ireland, so producing companies and others who are actively considering their D/deaf and/or disabled audiences can only stretch budgets to caption one or two performances in most cases.
But that’s just one part of the wider accessibility picture. What about BSL/ISL? Audio Description? Wheelchair access? Social stories? Accessible toilets? And everything else that contributes to a genuinely inclusive experience?
The arts in Northern Ireland are driven by a strong sense of social responsibility and the desire to make everyday life more accessible and meaningful for those who need it. Artists strive to lead by example, working tirelessly to help positively contribute to this place, its people and society as a whole.
But how can we do this while making sure arts workers are paid fairly, as they deserve, and no one is exploited? And when we begin to offer accessibility in our work, are we opening ourselves up to greater expectation? At Replay, are we more accountable to disabled or neurodivergent audiences than companies who don’t prioritise accessibility? I would argue not. Any organisation with public funding is accountable to the intended audiences of its work, regardless of disability or background.
Anyway, back to PRISM. This approach aligns with wider efforts across the sector, including recent initiatives led by Theatre and Dance NI to build captioning capacity. TDNI has brilliantly managed to secure captioning equipment, which they make available to hire at discounted rates for members, to help reduce associated costs.
As practitioners, we need to take further advantage of these provisions to help encourage more initiatives like this. Knowing TDNI equipment was available allowed me to conceive the idea of training stage managers in operating the SopraText software. This was an opportunity to bring onboard an additional crew member for the tour, trained to operate the captioning software by an expert, enhancing freelance employment in a small but significant way.
Additionally, the production benefits from extra support on get-ins and get-outs and all the bits between, reducing demands on the whole touring company. All this culminates in enabling us to caption every single performance across the entire tour, regardless of venue. It was an absolute no brainer.
Importantly, the real ‘expertise’ in Captioning is the creation of the show file, which absolutely must still be carried out by a specialist, but with this approach the daily operation of that show file becomes significantly more affordable and doesn’t step on any toes, it actually generates more jobs. In PRISM, we now have a stage manager operating QLab and an assistant stage manager operating Captioning, it’s bread and butter for the brilliant technical talent we have in our industry. Pauline Matthews, the professional Captioner we approached for advice and guidance on this strategy and employed to train the wonderful Deirbhile Larkin, PRISM’s ‘Stage Manager: Captioning’, could not have been more supportive of the concept.
We must also recognise that captioning isn’t used more widely because many companies struggle to secure the financial support needed to deliver fully accessible performances. However, this new methodology offers a more sustainable approach with relatively modest additional pre-production planning. It has the potential not only to expand provision, but also to create more opportunities for captioners as more organisations begin to see how viable it can be. Everyone’s skills are respected while accessibility grows and, above all, disabled people benefit from more appropriate consideration of their needs. The feedback from audiences regarding PRISM’s captioning provision was overwhelmingly positive. So positive, in fact, that Replay applied this strategy to the main-stage Lyric Theatre co-production ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’, with great success. The company will continue to work in this way, hopefully long into the future.
I was delighted to see TDNI facilitate their recent captioning training programme for stage managers and technicians. It is a pioneering concept, and I am proud of PRISM’s influence in helping to establish it. All accessibility provision will eventually become a normalised expectation from audiences, and practice such as this is critical in helping us achieve our social ambitions. It does, however, require dedication, commitment and investment. It cannot be a token gesture or last-minute add-on. Hire disabled artists and soak up their knowledge from lived experience like a sponge.
“Andrew’s work through PRISM demonstrated a genuinely innovative and practical approach to embedding accessibility within touring theatre productions. The way this model helped reframe captioning as something that could be integrated into the production process was particularly significant in shaping wider conversations around accessibility and sector capacity-building, including TDNI’s own recent captioning training delivery and future initiatives. With the recent passing of the Northern Ireland Sign Language Act, recognising both British Sign Language and Irish Sign Language, this kind of practical and sustainable accessibility work is becoming increasingly important across the arts sector.”
— Niamh Flanagan, Chief Executive, Theatre and Dance NI
Working internationally has reminded me that Northern Ireland boasts exceptional creative talent. The world-class quality here is not in response to adversity, but in spite of it. Imagine what could be achieved with greater investment.
About the Author
Andrew Stanford is Director of Inclusive Theatre at Replay Theatre Company, and an internationally celebrated inclusive arts consultant and practitioner. If you have any further questions for Andrew, you can contact him here.
Looking to deliver captioned performances? Theatre and Dance NI offers captioning equipment and training to support more accessible performance practice across the sector.