THEATRE for ALL: no-barrier, accessible art for all!

Theatergoing or art appreciation is an essential element of life for many, regardless of whether we have difficulties, illnesses or not. They are also important for young children, as art experience is an essential part of aesthetic education and helps develop a healthy mind.

But in reality, theaters are often inaccessible for people with difficulties or small children. The reason could be because some theatres lack essential facilities for them, or because the environment is unsuitable. For instance, taking small children to theatres is not easy. For parents, there would be various factors to consider before doing so. For example, keeping the children quiet or whether the program is simple and understandable for children.

Can parents and children enjoy the theatre while having to deal with various concerns? Some theatres and concert halls hold shows and concerts for young children, but not all are child-friendly in environmental and content aspects. For people with hearing difficulties, it could be hard to enjoy live performances without appropriate support. And for people with illnesses, going to the theater itself could be a barrier.

In recent years, using streaming platforms at home to enjoy videos, movies or music has become one of the most common ways to enjoy entertainment at home. And especially during a stay-at-home holiday or wintertime, more people are expected to make use of such platforms. These online streaming services are convenient, useful and handy, seemingly an accessible entertainment for anyone, including children and people with difficulties. Therefore, if these streaming platforms could provide theater quality performances online, it would benefit many people who had to give up theatergoing for various reasons.

THEATRE for ALL is an online streaming platform launched to provide art experiences to everyone. Since many performers and artists were also restricted from playing live performances due to the spread of COVID-19, this online theater could become a new stage for them. THEATRE for ALL will add subtitles, audio guidance, sign language and multilingual support to improve its accessibility, allowing anyone to enjoy art without having to worry about the barriers they may experience at existing theaters.

What’s notable about this online theater is that it also provides learning courses for its members. The esoteric or complicated image of art keeps some people away from theaters, not to mention small children, who could lose interest quickly if the content is hard to understand. To make art enjoyable for everyone, the learning courses give commentary and hold interactive workshops to deepen participants’ understanding of the performances. This is an innovative practice to take away the hesitation of people on the threshold.

THEATRE for ALL LAB was launched prior to the online theater to share and examine the difficulties people are facing today to improve the features of THEATRE for ALL. This accessible theater will begin streaming approximately 20 films and 30 learning programs from February, opening doors to diverse people, realizing cultured living for many through art.