Vocal Image Ensemble Winnipeg (VIEW) is a team of professionals providing audio description for blind/low vision audiences in Winnipeg, Manitoba. We specialize in live theatre, dance, and performance, as well as digital content and live events. We have worked with a multitude of theatres and companies in Winnipeg, including: Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, Prairie Theatre Exchange, Rainbow Stage, Theatre Projects Manitoba, Shakespeare in the Ruins, Manitoba Theatre for Young People, Winnipeg Fringe Festival, and Pride Winnipeg.
Live Performance Description
Also known as “Audio Description”, “Live Description” refers to descriptions of the visual elements of a performance or event that are spoken live and in real-time to listeners with vision loss.
VIEW’s described performances begin ten minutes before the show, with a brief introduction to the characters, costumes and locations. Once the show begins, important visual details and physical actions are described between the lines of dialogue. All descriptions are voiced live and in real-time by a trained Describer.
Only VIEW users can hear the description through a small handheld receiver and single earpiece that can be worn on either ear. Equipment can be picked up from the VIEW table in the lobby up to one hour before the show starts. Users are welcome to bring their own earbuds or portable headphones.
Land Acknowledgement
Sick + Twisted Theatre acknowledges that our work and performances take place on the traditional lands and waterways of the Anishinaabeg, Cree, Anisininew, Dakota, and Dene Peoples and the homeland of the Metis Nation. We respect the treaties made here. We acknowledge that Indigenous culture and art forms thrive on these lands despite having been criminalized by the forces of colonization. We acknowledge that people with disabilities or gifts among Indigenous communities continue to be criminalized, institutionalized, and denied care. As we create art that centres the perspective of Deaf and disabled artists, we seek to live in good relationship with the traditional caretakers of this land, respecting the wisdom and beauty of Indigenous culture.