DM Playhouse, IRIS, DSU Partnering for SARAH, PLAIN AND TALL Accessible Performance

The Des Moines Community Playhouse, Iowa Radio Reading Information Service for the Blind and Print Handicapped (IRIS), and Deaf Services Unlimited (DSU) present a fully-accessible performance of "Sarah, Plain and Tall." IRIS will provide live audio description, broadcast to the entire audience, and DSU will provide ASL interpretation. This special event is 4:00 PM, Saturday, Mar. 12, in the Kate Goldman Children's Theatre at the Playhouse. Tickets start at $15 and may be purchased online at dmplayhouse.com, by phone at 515-277-6261, or at the Playhouse ticket office, 831 42nd St. "Sarah, Plain and Tall" is sponsored by John Deere.

The afternoon begins at 3:30 PM with a "touch tour": several show props, including an ear of corn and seashells, will be available in the lobby for guests to feel. The IRIS Sensation Team will begin their commentary at 3:45 PM. The preshow presentation, audible to the entire audience, includes descriptions of the set and costumes, background on the characters, and a plot synopsis. The Iowa Department for the Blind will provide braille copies of the show's program. Live audio description of the visual elements, along with ASL interpretation, will continue throughout the performance. Immediately following the performance, volunteers will guide interested guests onto the stage to see and touch set pieces and meet actors.

John Viars, Playhouse executive director, said, "The Playhouse has a long-standing commitment to making the arts accessible to the entire community. We partnered with IRIS and DSU last year for a fully-accessible performance of 'The Miracle Worker.' It was a big success with audiences asking us to provide the experience again this year."

IRIS has been providing audio description for patrons at arts events since 2012. Typically guests hear the audio description on headsets worn during the performance. IRIS executive director Maryfrances Evans said, "We are so grateful to the Playhouse and all of our arts partners for supporting IRIS and audio description. This is classic Iowa; a wonderful demonstration of how neighbors are helping neighbors enjoy equal access to the arts."

Since 1997, DSU has been providing ASL interpretation for theatre productions and concerts throughout Central Iowa. Diana Kautzky, president of DSU, said, "Our team received performing arts interpreting training at The Julliard School in New York City. Over the past 20 years, we've interpreted everything from 'The Phantom of the Opera' to Cher's first farewell concert tour. Our interpreters are passionate about bringing the arts to the deaf community."

"Sarah, Plain and Tall" is set in early 1900s Kansas. A widowed farmer with two children places an ad in the newspapers seeking a wife. He receives a letter from Sarah Wheaton of Maine who says she will visit the family for a month to see how things work out: "I will come by train. I will wear a yellow bonnet. I am plain and tall." Thus begins the anything but plain tale of a family coming together when it is needed most.

IRIS is a free radio reading service that reads print information aloud to thousands of listeners throughout Iowa. The Sensation Team provides audio description of Des Moines Community Playhouse, Des Moines Performing Arts, Ballet Des Moines, and Des Moines Symphony performances. The audio description is free of charge. Support for the Sensation Team is provided by MidAmerican Energy and Kemin Industries. A complete schedule of upcoming performances is available on their website at iowaradioreading.org.

Deaf Services Unlimited (DSU) offers a full array of interpreting and communication services including: sign language interpreting, captioning, Telecommunications Access Iowa (TAI), real-time captioning (CART services), video remote interpreting, presentations, and staff training sessions. DSU manages sign language interpreting services for nearly 1,200 organizations throughout the U.S., no matter the setting, be it a live theatre performance, a doctor's appointment, the workplace, classroom, or video interpreting. DSU's performing arts team provides ASL interpretation for performances at the Des Moines Community Playhouse, Des Moines Performing Arts, and other Central Iowa venues. A complete schedule of upcoming performances is available on their website at deafservicesunlimited.com.

The Playhouse is one of the oldest and largest community theatres in the US. Located at the 42nd Street exit of I-235, the theatre has presented a full season of shows since 1919 and also offers a wide variety of educational experiences including classes for ages 4 to adult, theatre trips to New York, and volunteer opportunities onstage and backstage.

For more information about the Playhouse and "Sarah, Plain and Tall," contact the Playhouse ticket office at 515-277-6261.

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