Audio Description Services

If you’re looking to make your performance more accessible to visually impaired and blind audience members, audio description is crucial to expanding the accessibility of your work.

Part of the Main offers audio description services led by experienced theatre makers who understand the nuances of performance and can work with directors, producers and performers to offer accompanying audio description of shows of all scales.

Thanks to a Starting Out Grant from Unlimited, we own our own full ListenTALK radio system. Often, smaller venues don’t have their own audio description equipment, which can limit access possibilities for fringe productions, and renting equipment can add hundreds of pounds to stretched budgets. We aim to address this limitation through including equipment hire as part of our audio description services. We also offer offer equipment hire separately at affordable rates in order to improve accessibility across fringe and small-scale theatre productions.

Our Audio Description Team includes Olivia Munk and Jessica Bickel-Barlow. We trained with Roz Chalmers MBE, and our past Audio Description delivery projects include the National Theatre Schools Tour of Jekyll & Hyde and our own production of Bloody Mary: LIVE! at the Pleasance. We are members of the Audio Description Association.

Rates

All of our services include Introductory Notes, Audio Description Scriptwriting, Delivery, Equipment and review by one of our consultants: Yusuf Osman, a trustee for the Audio Description Association, or Glen Turner, writer of the culture blog Well Eye Never. Both Yusuf and Glen are Audio Description users, so their insight will ensure our work is best tailored to its intended audiences.

As we understand budgets and needs for shows vary widely, we will put together a package that best works with the needs of your production and work within your available budget.

While we’re based in London, we’re happy to travel and discuss travel and accommodation options for our describers that fit with the specifications of your production and venue.

Audio Description Writing & Delivery

Performance of 60 minutes or less

From £600

Performance of 120 minutes or less

From £800

Performance of 2 hours or more

From £1,000

Equipment Hire

First two days (dry run + audio described performance) - £70

Third day - £105

Fourth day & any days thereafter - £35

Please note these costs are not inclusive of courier fees.