Showing posts with label Broadway accessibility. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Broadway accessibility. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

A Blind Theatergoer's 'Hamilton' Lawsuit Aims Spotlight On Broadway Accessibility; NPR, March 14, 2017

Jeff Lunden, NPR; 

A Blind Theatergoer's 'Hamilton' Lawsuit Aims Spotlight On Broadway Accessibility


""I think what this suit brings to light is that you have a hidden population out there that is not gaining the full access to Broadway," says attorney Scott Dinin, who is representing Lasser in the class-action suit against the show's producers and theater owner...

"Certainly once a show sets up a sustained run — and when we look at musicals that run five, 10, 15, 20 years — it really is a very small price to pay for opening up a show to a much, much wider audience," Sherman says.

That's really what Dinin, Lasser's attorney, is trying to say with this legal action. He is not seeking damages for his client — he can't, under the terms of the ADA. He is trying to make sure that theater becomes more inclusive, by spotlighting the problem, using Broadway's biggest hit.

"Audio description is so necessary," Dinin says. "It's the right thing to do. It's not that expensive. And it's just a thinking process. It's a mindset. We have to get a mindset: How do we increase inclusion? It should be top-of-mind. Equality, accommodation and respect. Because once people put that at the decision-making table, all the services will flow from that.""