Wednesday, April 15, 2026
How to Embrace the Dramaturgy of Creative Caption Design
HowlRound Theatre Commons: Captions play an important role in the accessibility of theatrical productions for all audience members, particularly those who are d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHOH), neurodivergent, and/or living with sensory processing disorders. Secondary to their use as an accessibility tool, captions are an important visual element of a theatrical production and should be approached with the same thought, artistry, and attention as design elements like lighting and projections. This is where the concept of creative captions come in.
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Earlier this year I saw Another Kind of Silence, which was largely performed in ASL, and it had a very creative use of captions that really integrated with and accentuated the scenic elements. I hadn’t thought before, though, about how to deliver captions on individual devices that still feel like an element of the show. I love the idea of matching text color to the color of someone’s costume, or using different fonts for different tones, or varying text placement to mirror blocking. As someone who doesn’t need captions but understands TV much better with them on, I would honestly enjoy captions in live theater. Sometimes, if I can’t understand what people are saying on stage, I lose the plot for like 5 minutes and can’t really get it back. So, having captions that are not only accurate but also a design element and engaging would really add something for me and create more accessibility, which is always the goal.
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