Laguna Playhouse Partners with TDF's National Captioning Initiative for 'ALADDIN', OLIVER! and CLYBOURNE PARK

TDF's National Open Captioning Initiative (NOCI), which offers two-year partnerships with regional theatres and performing arts centers across the United States to sponsor open captioned performances, has announced the theatres that will receive their first year of sponsorship to help expand their access objectives during the 2017-18 season.

The new theatres TDF will provide open captioning for are: Cleveland Play House, Cleveland, Ohio; Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles, CA; Goodspeed Musicals, East Haddam, CT; Laguna Playhouse, Laguna Beach, CA; Palace Theater, Waterbury, CT; and Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Beverly Hills, CA.

The Laguna Playhouse Open Captioning shows are as follows:

OLIVER

Saturday, November 11, 2017 at 1:00 PM

Laguna Playhouse Youth Theatre

ALADDIN AND HIS WINTER WISH - AN AMERICAN PANTO

Saturday, December 16, 2017 at 12:00 PM

CLYBOURNE PARK

Saturday, June 16, 2018 at 2:00 PM

The mission of the program is to help theatres provide increased accessibility and expand their attendance by people who are deaf or hard of hearing over a two year period. The goal is that after the two years, the theatres will have developed a strategy to continue providing this much needed access for these audience members in their communities.

"This is quite an exciting group of new theatres that have proven their commitment to further welcoming people with hearing disabilities to their productions," said Lisa Carling, TDF's Director of Accessibility Programs. "We're thrilled to be working with the Laguna Playhouse to provide open captioning for one performance of three of their shows in their upcoming season."

Comments Ellen Richard, Executive Director of the Laguna Playhouse, "TDF has been a champion of access for all for many years. I am so happy that they are giving us the ability to provide access for a new community in Orange County."

Since TDF launched the National Open Captioning Initiative (NOCI) in 2004, it has provided open-captioning to 51 theatre companies.

Tickets for Open Captioned shows are available by calling (949) 497-ARTS (2787). Group discounts are available by calling 949-497-2787 ext. 229.

The box office is open Mondays - Saturdays: 11a.m. to 5 p.m. (open until showtime on performance days); Sundays: 11a.m. - 4p.m.

For more information on all shows and programming visit www.lagunaplayhouse.com. Laguna Playhouse is located at 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach.

Founded in 1920, the historic Laguna Playhouse is one of the oldest continuously-operating not-for-profit theatres on the West Coast and is proud to be an active participant in the celebrated Laguna Beach arts community. From classic plays and musical comedies to the current off-Broadway smash, cutting edge and traditional music exhibitions, dance festivals and stand-up comedy performances, Laguna Playhouse brings the magical experience of the performing arts direct to over 80,000 patrons each season.

Laguna Playhouse educational programming includes year-round classes, productions by and for children and teens (Youth Theatre) and is one of the few companies in the region that offer a curriculum-based professional theatre-touring program, TheatreReach, which aligns with the California State Standards for literature, history and performing arts curriculum.

Laguna Playhouse has been recognized in 2016 and 2015 as one of Orange County Register's "Best of OC" in the category of Live Theatre, and has been recognized by OC Hotlist in their "Best Theatre Group" winning first place in 2017 and 2016. The Laguna Playhouse has featured many talented performers on stage, including Ed Asner, Leslie Caron, Hershey Felder, Harrison Ford, Val Kilmer, Gregory Harrison, Dan Lauria, Hal Linden, Wendie Malick, Rita Rudner, Charles Shaughnessy, French Stewart, Loretta Swit, and Bette Davis.

TDF, a not-for-profit service organization for the performing arts, was created in the conviction that the live theatrical arts afford a unique expression of the human condition that must be sustained and nurtured. It is dedicated to developing diverse audiences for live theatre and dance, and strengthening the performing arts community in New York City. Since 1968, TDF's programs have provided over 94 million people with access to performances at affordable prices and have returned over $2.8 billion to thousands of productions.

Best known for its TKTS Discount Booths, TDF's membership, outreach, access (including the Autism Theatre Initiative) and education programs - as well as its Costume Collection - have introduced thousands of people to the theatre and helped make the unique experience of theatre available to everyone, including students and people with disabilities.

Recent TDF honors include a 2011 Mayor's Award for Arts and Culture, a 2012 Tony Honor for Excellence for its Open Doors Arts Education Program, a 2012 New York Innovative Theatre Award for its support of the off-Off Broadway community and a 2013 Lucille Lortel honor for "Outstanding Body of Work" in support of the Off Broadway community, a 2016 "Friend of Off-Broadway" honor from The Off Broadway Alliance, and New York City's 2016 TITLE II ADA Sapolin Public Service Award. With the Broadway League, TDF recently launched the website, Theatre Access NYC (www.theatreaccess.nyc) which assists theatregoers with disabilities in finding accessible performances of Broadway shows. To learn more about TDF, go to www.tdf.org.