A Welcome Day at Tate ModernOn Sunday 19 November. Tate Modern will have a range of events and activities for Deaf and hard of hearing adults & children. These will range from interactive workshops for families, to performances. Tours and films. All events are free. For further information, contact Tate Modern on:
Keep in touch !Contact SPIT at:
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SPIT Conference 2000Theatre and the Deaf Audience - A Good Night Out ? A national one-day conference has been organised by SPIT to discuss the quality of a night out at the theatre, from the viewpoint of people who are Deaf, or hard of hearing. The conference - A Good Night Out? will be held at the Metro Cinema in Derby, on Saturday 7th October. Introducing the conference will be Janet Beech-McCoy who is Deaf, and the Chair of SPIT. Under discussion will be the wide range of issues that affect the Deaf and hard of hearing theatre audience. Guest speakers will include John Wilson (Deaf Arts Officer of Shape UK), Genny Fillery (Deaf Theatre Administrator), Jeffrey Wilson (Deaf actor), Diana Kingdom (Disability Direct, Derby), and Andrew McIntyre (Metro Cinema). Delegates are expected to consist of both Deaf and hearing people, who either work in, or attend theatre. SPIT member, Caroline Bradley will chair a debate on the hot issue of sign language interpreters, so a thought-provoking and honest exchange of experience is expected. Following the conference, we are taking opportunity of the fact that the conference is being held in a cinema, where there will be a sign language interpreted screening of Luzhin and Defence, which will be interpreted by Angela McDaid. A place on A Good Night Out ? conference costs Deaf and hard of hearing delegates £7, SPIT member delegates £20, and non-SPIT delegates £30. Spaces are limited, and so advance booking is essential. Further details are available from SPIT, telephone/fax 0161 773 1715, or contact us |
Earlier this year, over 50 people took part in sign language drama and visual arts workshops at Colchester Museums to produce a signed interpretation of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on video. This poem is one of Colchester's most famous nursery rhymes, written by the Taylor sisters, whose mother had a hearing impairment.
Colchester Museums was awarded £24,000 by the Millennium Commission to undertake this ground breaking project in co-operation with people who are Deaf or hard of hearing. Colchester Museums worked alongside RAD (Royal Association in Aid of Deaf people), Signals Media Arts and Theatre Resource.
Georgina Colthorpe, Assistant Social History Curator for Colchester Museums says: "This has been an exciting and unique project enabling the Museums Service to work with members of the Deaf community. Everyone has been so enthusiastic about it, and I hope people will take the opportunity to view the exhibition."
The video is directed by Ramon Woolf, a Deaf video director, who has worked for BBC's See Hear programme. The exhibition is currently on display in the Childhood Gallery in the newly refurbished Hollytrees Museum (Colchester), and will return to Colchester library for Christmas.
Captioned TheatreOver the years there have been developments that make the media more accessible to Deaf, deafened, and hard of hearing people. Most of us are familiar with subtitles on TV, captioned videos and sign language interpreted theatre performances. A more recent development is captioned theatre, which is intended to benefit those Deaf people who do not use sign language. The text is shown on a large display unit alongside the stage, either by using computer-assisted transcription such as Palantype, or by pre-recording the script into a computer. A similar system has been in use at the Royal Opera House to show English translations of operas sung in a foreign language. Deaf people in the UK will have a chance of seeing captioned theatre next spring when a team from New York will be putting on captioned shows at a selected London theatre. Further information can be obtained from Geoff Brown, 103 Heath Road, Widnes, WA8 7NU fax 0151 420 7316; text phone 0151 424 3648; email: gbrown@heath.cix.co.uk |
No-Clash DiaryAvoid clashing with another venue offering a SLIP on the same night as you; use SPIT's National No-Clash Diary to check and register dates for your SLIPs. Remember - it only works if you use it ! |
SPIT IT OUT!I am writing to make a complaint as the only signed performance of Lord of The Flies at the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith had to be cancelled. This was due to Wendy Ebsworth being unwell, but why wasn't there another interpreter qualified to cover? I was informed by the theatre the day before the performance. I did get a full refund, but I was told that there wouldn't be another signed performance in the future. There will always be occasions when near the time of signed performances, the interpreters may fall ill. What happens? Can they be postponed to other dates? Why not have understudies to interpreters as actors/actresses do on stage? One of the projects that SPIT would like to establish is a mentor scheme by which qualified interpreters who are not currently working in theatre, but who would like to, are taken on by a theatre or particular interpreter so that they can gain some experience, perhaps interpreting a dress rehearsal, observing the experienced theatre interpreter and also acting as an understudy. |
Accessorise Autumn 2000Throughout October and November, we are running a full-day workshop on Deaf awareness at venues throughout England and Scotland: Leeds, Wolverhampton, London, Watford and Glasgow. Each workshop is led by John Wilson, SPIT board member and Deaf Arts Office for shape London, and accompanied by Sara Cross, SPIT Board member and Disability Access Officer at Nottingham Playhouse. Here is what some past participants say about the course: "Exactly what I wanted, needed, and expected."
For a booking form, please contact Sarah Sills tel/fax 0161 773 1715, or contact us SPIT will be at the RNID Hear for All Exhibition
Full details from RNID |
If you have any projects that you would like share with other SPIT members, please send the details to Sarah Sills at SPIT.
Any photos or images of events past and present are always gratefully received, and we promise to return them to you as soon as they have been used.