Audio description is increasingly being used to assist blind and visually impaired people to enjoy live events. This video gives some insight into the process within a theatrical setting:
Below are some of the key AD services in the following regions. Follow the links to jump straight to information about your prefered area:
Travelling between these different states and territories might also provide an opportunity to access AD through in-flight movies. You can find out more here.
Nationally, a number of cinema chains offer audio described screenings across the country.
In addition, Vision Australia provides AD for live performances across the country using trained describers. See what’s on near you here.
ACT
National Gallery of Australia
On the first Sunday of every month, NGA offers a small live descriptive tour of major exhibitions or works of art in the National Gallery’s collection. This social tour, designed for participants who are blind, or who have low vision, facilitates shared discussion and uses tactile resources. The tour is free but bookings essential.
Please contact access@nga.gov.au or +61 2 6240 663. Further information (including how to navigate to the Gallery) can be found here.
Canberra Theatre Centre:
Select performances will be described by trained volunteers from Vision Australia, this service is complimentary. Discreet receivers are available for collection prior to the performance and CTC staff will happily show you how to adjust them for your use.
To access this service check to see if the show advertises Audio Described Performance dates. Alternatively you can contact the Box Office or complete the online access enquiry form to make a booking. For more information see here .
New South Wales
Vivid Festival Audio-described Session
Sydney’s Vivid Festival began in 2009 as a festival of light. Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2018, the Sydney Opera House event has expanded to become an annual celebration of light, design, technology, and culture. It is only fitting then that the festival offers audio-described sessions to include people with blindness and vision impairment in the Sydney Harbour extravaganza.
With the Lighting of the Sails of the Sydney Opera house being the cornerstone of the event, the festival is typically very visual. People with vision impairment have had to rely on their imagination — and their friends and family to describe the lights. However, in 2014 the festival made a change and began offering audio-described sessions of the Lighting of the Sails.
Jane Armstrong, who attended an audio-described session in 2017, described the difference to her experience and feeling of social inclusion:
‘Without the audio description and the detail that’s provided I wouldn’t be able to tell what’s happening on the sails, and I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the experience of Vivid as others can.’
People with blindness and low vision attending the festival are given more information about the displays via tactile elements such as Opera House tiles to feel what the lights are being projected on, and a miniature model of the Opera House itself.
These audio description and tactile features were part of the Sydney Opera House’s Accessibility overhaul, a plan seeking to ‘provide barrier-free access, making the site, building and the experiences they offer accessible to all people.’ The Opera House’s accessibility measures take into account people who are blind or have low vision, people who are deaf or have a hearing impairment and people with physical disabilities.
While Vision Australia volunteers provide the audio description of the Lighting of the Sales, audio description provider The SubStation audio-describe the light installations (Accessible Arts provided the audio descriptions from 2014 to 2016. The SubStation provided AD and text-to-talk in 2017 and 2018). They approach the task by considering both the artists’ intentions and the reality that audiences may be accessing the art and audio description in the cold and try to keep descriptions to less than a minute. Major installations can require descriptions of 2-4 minutes, however, the descriptions aren’t synced to the installation which allows the audience to visit at their own pace. Audiences can use The SubStation’s description, the artists’ description, plus their own experience of the installation to decide on the meaning of the artwork.
Much of the artwork is purely visual. The festival’s describers focus on conveying what the installation itself looks like. Alison Myers from The SubStation told us that although the describers try to stay neutral in their descriptions, the artist’s intention is often outlined in their blurbs, so describers ‘try to use language that matches their intent – eg, if their installation has a nautical theme, our descriptions will follow suit. ‘
The SubStation described the 2018 installation HE’E NALU which is Hawaiian for ‘surf’ as:
‘Two undulating fences formed by sets of illuminated posts flank a footpath. The contours created by the different angles and heights of the posts resemble rolling waves. The vertical shape of the waves are created by arranging the posts in order of height, gradually rising then falling. The posts also stand at angles, their gradually increasing and decreasing steepness creating the horizontal curve of the waves. As visitors move between the waves, marine shades of blue and orange flow through the sinuous structures.’
Because most installations change in some way, The SubStation describers try to capture the nature of their visual change. Descriptions reproduce the physical nature of the changes for example, pulsing, flowing, weaving, spinning and twisting. Because most installations involve moving coloured light, the audio describers try to be imaginative with the descriptions they provide to ensure variety in the words they use. The installations are often interactive, so when necessary descriptions include details on how to interact with the installations.
The Gallery of New South Wales
The Gallery of New South Wales offers some audio-described tours of their permanent galleries and some of their temporary exhibitions, which they recommend booking at least two weeks in advance. For enquiries and booking, telephone 02 9225 1740 or email education@ag.nsw.gov.au. You can find out more details and sign up for access programs e-news here.
Sydney Theatre Company
The Sydney Theatre Company presents a selection of audio described performances each year. These performances include a workshop and tour of the set prior to the performance, to enable vision impaired patrons to familiarise themselves with the physical aspects of the production.
Audio-described performances must be booked via telephone. Please contact STC’s Box Office on (02) 9250 1777 or boxoffice@sydneytheatre.com.au and specify your requirements at the time of booking. When booking for an audio-described performance, please let STC know the number of headsets you require. Headsets should be collected before the performance from the Box Office. For details of upcoming performances visit their accessibility page here.
NT
Uluru
The Uluru Kata-Tjuta Cultural Centre discusses the ongoing connection with the land which has endured until the present day and their website says you can immerse yourself in these stories through their audio descriptions throughout the centre. To find out more telephone 08 8956 1128 or email uluru.info@dcceeww.gov.au
Darwin Festival
The annual Darwin Festival does not currently offer AD, but does encourage suggestions for increased accessibility by phoning 08 8943 4222 or emailing access@darwinfestival.org.au
South Australia
The Art Gallery of South Australia
The Art Gallery of South Australia offers tours in self-guided audio, audio described, Auslan (Australian Sign Language) and plain English. More information available on their website here.
Access2Arts
Access2Arts has been pioneering the development and training of audio description, particularly of live theatre and visual arts in South Australia, since 2010. They provide training for audio describers and an audio description service for cultural events, festivals, performances and organisations. Access2Arts established Australia’s first professional live-theatre audio description service. More information is available via the Access2Arts website. This website also provides a list of clients they have delivered their services to: a good guide to exploring where you might find AD in SA.
Adelaide Festival.
The annual Adelaide Festival usually held in March, has previously offered audio description. To learn about their AD offerings for upcoming festivals, you can contact them via email on access@adelaidefestival.com.au
State Theatre Company South Australia
Audio Described Performances can be booked online, via phone on 08 8415 5353 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm), or via email at tickets@statetheatrecompany.com.au.
To sign up to their access email list, please send your name, contact number and area of interest (audio description, AUSLAN interpretation, captioning, etc.) to access@statetheatrecompany.com.au
A list of their upcoming performances with AD can be found here.
Tasmania
The State Cinema
In Hobart, The State Cinema offers audio description for select films and sessions. Audio described films are marked with the AD symbol on the Session Times page. Hovering the cursor over an audio described session will also result in a pop up box stating that “Audio description for the vision impaired is available for this session.”
Tourism Tasmania
Tasmania has become the first state to offer audio guides on the Vacayit travel app, Australia’s only audio-based tourism platform for blind and low-vision (BLV) travellers.
Tourism Tasmania has partnered with Vacayit to produce 50 audio guides designed to help blind and low-vision visitors plan and enjoy their holiday in Tasmania by combining rich sensory descriptions and engaging storytelling with helpful travel information.
The audio guides showcase a range of experiences and tourism businesses across Tasmania’s regions. Listeners can be guided through a forest walk in takayna / Tarkine, visit the Furneaux Distillery on Flinders Island, take a cruise along the Gordon River, explore Cataract Gorge or indulge at Tasmania’s Taste of Summer festival.
Each of the audio guides features an accessibility section – highlighting details about wheelchair access, assistance dogs, braille, on-site audio guides, audio-tactile traffic lights, accessible parking, bathroom facilities and sensory considerations. The audio guides can also be read as transcripts for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
The guides aim to encourage visitation and welcome people with disabilities to Tasmania’s world-class destinations, ensuring all travellers can get the most from their stay in Tasmania.
To listen to the audio guides, download the Vacayit app for free from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
For more information about Vacayit can be found here.
Victoria
Victorian Opera
National Gallery of Victoria
NGV invite you to join an NGV Guide for an audio described tour of the NGV Collection or selected exhiitions. They ask you to book your tour two weeks in advance of your planned visit. More details (including archived audio described content) and a link to how to enquire here.
Western Australia
DADAA
As a non-profit organisation, DADAA promotes cultural participation for people who are blind and vision-impaired by providing live and recorded audio description services to around 50 arts and cultural events each year.
Technology such as the free Sennheiser Mobileconnect App, allows you to listen to live descriptions of theatre performances, roving performances, concerts, and many other events. These descriptions can be accessed via your own mobile device and earphones.
You can find out about upcoming events here.
Their website also explains that DADAA is a registered NDIS providers and how you can include the arts in your NDIS plan. For more information, visit here.
Arts and Culture Trust
They say: Users of the service are given a small earpiece and receiver into which they hear a volunteer describe aspects of the set, costumes and action. The volunteer audio describers watch the show two to three times prior to describing it to patrons, once from inside the auditorium as patrons and twice from screens or in a room set up backstage. Using a script they make notes of the actions taking place on stage then use these notes to describe what is happening ‘live’ during the performance.
Tactile tours may also be provided as part of the service.
The audio description starts 10 minutes before the show so that the set can be described or sections of the programme read to you. Please arrive at least 30 minutes before the performance commences to collect your equipment and ensure that you are comfortably seated when the audio description begins.
Please let our box office know you would like to participate in the tactile tour when booking tickets, so we can guarantee your spot and let you know what time to come before the performance starts.
We regularly email updates about the Audio Description service to our database of patrons who utilize the service, and we also keep in touch through a closed Facebook group.
For further information regarding the Audio Description Service, or to add your name to our database to receive show updates, please contact (08) 6212 9295.
To find out what’s on with AD visit here.
Moving inbetween and beyond
Increasingly, audio description is being offered as part of inflight entertainment.
So how do the Australian Airlines fare?
We reached out to both Virgin Australia and Qantas regarding their options for passengers who are blind and vision impaired.
Qantas
Qantas do offer audio description on in flight entertainment; however, you may need to ask the cabin crew for assistance. The movies with audio descriptive soundtracks are clearly marked on the movie poster and in the title on the screen.
Qantas also have a dedicated Audio Descriptive category which houses all new audio described movies in one place.
Virgin
Virgin inflight entertainment allows you to access sites where audio description is available using their wireless In-Flight Entertainment.
Apple iOS for iPhone and iPad offers inbuilt screen reader VoiceOver. Press and hold the home button to activate Siri. Request Siri activates Accessibility/VoiceOver.
The VoiceOver screen reader will convert buttons and text into a synthetic voice.
Virgin also offer WiFi on long haul flights, and select domestic aircraft, if you wish to access a site where audio description entertainment is available.
At the movies across the nation
Cinemas in Australia first began offering audio description in 2009; however, the service was limited to 12 screens in remote Australian locations.
As cinemas began to shift to digital technologies the four major cinema chains: Hoyts, Village Cinemas, Event Cinemas (Greater Union Birch Carroll and Coyle), and Reading Cinemas announced a joint commitment to rollout audio description, as part of the Department of Social Services funded Cinema Access Implementation Plan. They planned to provide AD on 242 screens in 132 cinema locations by 2014 to provide around 840 accessible movie sessions each week.
Details of chains are below. Please note that some cinemagoers have complained that whilst screenings may indicate they have AD, on arrival at a particular cinema for a particular screening, there may not be a member of staff available familiar with the AD offering (including how to locate and set up the headsets). It may be worth contacting your local cinema in advance to ensure everything is ready for your arrival.
All locations are equipped with CCAD, which stands for “Closed Caption & Audio Description Device Available.” Navigate to the session times section on the website where you will see some sessions marked with CCAD. This is to inform individuals that there are devices to assist them view their film for that particular session. If you are unable to find any sessions with these markings, you are invited to contact the cinema directly and they can organise it.
Village Cinemas
Village Cinemas provide audio description via a wireless audio system. You can find more information and search for sessions via the dedicated Village Cinemas AD search page.
Event Cinemas
Event Cinemas provide select sessions where audio description is available. You can search the Event Cinemas accessibility page to locate an audio described session near you.
Alternatively, go to www.eventcinemas.com.au , select your cinema, click Times & Tickets and hover over your desired session. An AD symbol indicates if audio description is available.