onStage Pittsburgh: Prime Stage Theatre and their audio describer, Nathan Ruggles, are honored to be the recipients of the American Council of the Blind (ACB) 2022 Audio Description Achievement Awards in the Performing Arts/Organization and Performing Arts/Individual categories. Prime Stage Theatre and Ruggles were recognized for their continued efforts to develop and present audio-described performances that bring literature to life for audiences in the Pittsburgh area.
3 comments:
Very few theatres are as inclusive as The Prime Stage Theatre in terms of audio visual viewers. I am intrigued by how the Prime Stage Theatre used their audio descriptions to encompass the show to make it accessible for all audiences. This theatre is inspiring to others to create a more inclusive viewing experience for everyone. I enjoyed learning about this award as I have never heard of such an award being presented to theatres. I enjoyed learning about how this theatre creates an audio visual experience for all audiences and how it doesn’t hinder the show and instead adds to the experience. I enjoyed learning about this theatre and award and would love to experience this way of viewing a show at some point in the future. How Nathan Ruggles and the company at Prime Stage have been able to create an environment that is open to all audiences is new to the theatre community, but it is inspiring to young theatre goers like myself. I believe that in the future, this audio description will be a normal occurrence in all theatres around the world.
This is AWESOME! I never knew audio descriptions had their own awards (which is so deserved and cool!) locally or nationally. This award is so interesting as well because it is not just for the arts but also the science of inclusive audio-described media. I think more theatres should be looking into how to make their productions accessible to all audience types including those hard of hearing. I liked how the article also explained that people who are not hard of hearing can also utilize the audio description service as a means of accessibility for other ability levels in English, ADHD, and more. I do hope they continue to evolve and push their accessibility work to new levels each year and continue to grow inclusive spaces. One day of performances that are deemed “accessible” isn't enough, we should strive to make most days accessible to anyone who wishes to see theatre. Congrats to Nathan Ruggles, the work he is doing is so important and should be recognized!
Nathan Ruggle’s acknowledgement with the award is reassuring that the work was done in audio description. In a larger frame of mind it is good that while not as often as we might like, that people who work to make the theatre accessible to everyone can aid in breaking down the barriers that stop many from enjoying live performance. I also didn’t know they had plans to print large braille playbills which is amazing. Honestly I didn’t know how close audio description writers got to the costumes and sets and stage to help in writing but it makes perfect sense. I also think it takes a lot of skill to make dialogue flow with the sound descriptions and is an overlooked but necessary skill for a theatre company trying to provide what the Prime Stage is doing. I believe it’s critical to keep celebrating those who continue to make theatre more inclusive especially with its long history of being categorized as elitist.
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