Chilled Performances (also called Relaxed Performances) are a way of opening up the experience of theatre to a wider audience. We first started collaborating with venues to offer them three years ago, and since then their worth and importance has been shown time and time again.
What makes a Chilled Performance different is that the well-established rules that go along with theatre attendance, such as being quiet, staying in your seat or staying awake for that matter, are changed. If you come to a Vamos Theatre Chilled Performance you can come and go freely during the show (low level houselights will be on so that you can see your way out) and noise or movements in the audience are no problem. There are small adjustments to the lighting and sound to try to limit shocks or stresses, and venue staff are on hand to provide help and support.
A popular element of a Vamos Theatre Chilled Performance is that the characters are introduced before the show starts, plus sound and lighting states that might be unexpected. You also get the chance to meet the actors before and after the show in the auditorium – so it’s really easy going.
We’ve already held one Chilled Performance at the Courtyard Theatre, Hereford on our current tour of A Brave Face and there are three remaining. Each is open to everyone, whatever your reason for coming is fine – even if you just want to see what one is like. We’ll see you there!
Chilled Performances
New Theatre Royal
20-24 Guildhall Walk, Portsmouth, PO1 2DD
04 Apr 2019 7:30PM
Book here
Lincoln Drill Hall
Free School Lane, Lincoln, LN2 1EY
Wed 24 Apr 2019 7:30PM
Book here
Carriageworks
The Electric Press, 3 Millennium Square, Leeds, LS2 3AD
Fri 26 Apr 2019 7:30PM
Book here
If you're coming to a Chilled Performance of A Brave Face and would like to know the story in advance, you can also download the Visual Story, which explains what happens using pictures and accessible text. Download it here. Veterans can also download our Trigger and Safety Sheet which identifies potential triggers in the performance for people living with Post Traumatic Stress.
Whilst I applaud any efforts to open up theatre to a wider audience, I found that the introduction explaining lighting and sound effects reduced the impact of the performance. (Being offered the trigger info sheet also meant that the plot held no surprises.) The most impactful part of the performance therefore was the revealing of the actor playing Ryan. The subject matter is so powerful that I was looking for a far more visceral experience. I’m not sure how you square the circle regarding inclusivity.
ReplyHello Jane, Firstly thank you for coming to see the show and letting us know about coming to a Chilled Performance. Were you aware beforehand that the performance would be a Chilled one? We always emphasise to venues who run them that they should make it clear to people when they book that it will be a different kind of performance - so I hope that happened. You also definitely shouldn't have been offered the Trigger sheet without an explanation of what it is and who it is for and, of course, that it contains the plot! So i can only apologise if that wasn't the case. We'll look into what we can do to make this more of a priority for venues in the future, so thank you for your feedback. Whilst it's very important to create accessible performances, it's also important that people know what they are booking! All best wishes, janie
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