Education
VOX is committed to expanding the breadth and scope of accessible programming by training and increasing the capacity of Blind, Deaf, DeafBlind, disabled and marginalized artists and experts.
Accessibility PRACTICES for DEAFBLIND patrons for arts organizations
Vox has partnered with Silent Rhythms to create modules to teach Arts Organizations best practices in welcoming the Deafblind community. Release schedule for June 2025.
Culturally Responsive Audio Describer Workshop
Through Open Door Theater and in a joint venture with the American Repertory Theater, we ran the first of its kind BIPOC/AAPI Audio Describer Training to increase the pool of Culturally Competent Audio Describers in MA. Currently, the large majority of providers in the field globally are non-disabled, white, and often lack the cultural competency to adequately describe the work of diverse playwrights. We recruited Thomas Reid and Cheryl Green, expert AD trainers and BIPOC/AAPI trainees from the black actor community, the Boston Black Writers Association and the Asian American Playwrights Association, and the local interpreter pool to train them in the art of Culturally Competent Audio Description. Then we facilitated hiring and onboarding our trainees to local arts organizations to train and model new practices in audio description, including the best practice of inclusion of a blind expert consultant on all teams, revolutionizing and improving the quality of access in MA.
Applications are open for the next Culturally Responsive AD Training Session dates TBD on ZOOM.
We are especially interested Blind and Low Vision Describers.
This workshop is intended to be a level one course for Audio Description Candidates to increase the cultural competency of Audio Description for live events in Massachusetts and beyond. It is open to actors, voice actors, writers, and anyone interested in the field of theater, performances and access. Audio Description is a paid access service for live performances. There will be hands-on activities in class and brief at-home exercises in a fun, supportive learning environment. We will touch on the full AD life cycle including writing, narrating, community building, the live theater experience, delivery, and evaluation of Audio Description. Facilitators are Thomas Reid, Audio Description narrator, producer, and Advocate and Cheryl Green, Audio Description writer, narrator, and producer.
Trainees will:
- Learn fundamentals of writing and narrating live theater Audio Description as a creative, subjective practice
- Gain knowledge needed to begin writing and narrating for live theater and leading touch tours with a mentor
- Discuss foundations for building partnerships and audience within blind and low vision community
All session goals will be addressed with an understanding of cultural competency and cultural responsivity built in.
To hear from the first Cohort about their experiences see the YouTube Video.
Meet The Trainers
Thomas Reid
Audio Producer | Voice Over Talent | Audio Description Narrator Consultant & Advocate
Shortly after becoming blind in 2004, Thomas Reid decided to re-ignite a dormant interest in audio production. Thomas has been thinking critically about Audio Description since his early in theater experience in 2007. He’s been covering the topic on the podcast since 2015 and most notably since critiquing various aspects of AD in Marvel’s Black Panther in 2018. Through his Flipping the Script on Audio Description series, Reid continues to explore the art by going beyond surface level topics and examining its implications on the community. As an Audio Description Narrator, Reid has appeared on projects for Netflix, Hulu, PBS and more. He provides consultations for independent film makers, film festivals, co-facilitates workshops and serves as moderator or panelist for discussions on audio description and content accessibility.
Cheryl Green
Cheryl Green, MFA, MS is an independent Access Artist with a focus as a captioner, audio describer, and multi-media digital artist. She’s a 2017 AIR New Voices Scholar, 2020 DOC NYC Documentary New Leader, Digital Operations Lead and a Member-Owner at New Day Films, and a member of the Social Audio Description collective. She brings her lived experience with multiple invisible disabilities to creating media that explores politically- and culturally-engaged stories from cross-disability communities. Her audio and written blog, transcribed podcast, and documentary films are at Who Am I To Stop It. She captions and audio describes films for Kinetic Light, Superfest International Disability Film Festival, and Cinema Touching Disability, and leads workshops for artists and museums on arts accessibility.
Director of Artistic Sign Language (DASL) SEMINAR – ADDITIONAL DATES TBD
DASL Cohort 2024
Image Description: A large group photo of 11 Deaf, hearing, BIPOC and white folks of varying ages, including the Sojourners ASL team, Vox DASL cohort members and Deaf community members who attended the show. From right to left: Kellynette Gomez, Bobby Bielma-Jackson, Jessenia Kolaco, Kristin Johnson, Aidan Mark, Morgan Beall, Christopher Robinson, Leon Jerfita, Megan Malzkuhn, Jiyoung Jou and friend. They are smiling with shoulders tucked into shoulders in front of the stage, some leaning in, some with a hand on the other. The stage has beams with strings taught and connected to the ground with navy blue lighting.
Starting in Fall 2024, aspiring and experienced Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing Interpreters, artists, dramaturgs and theater-goers convened for monthly conversations on Zoom led by ASL performing arts interpreter and Accessibility Coordinator Kevin Dyels and veteran DASLs Kristin Johnson, Monique “Momo” Holt and Rachel Berman-Kobylarz. Together, workshop attendees and seasoned veterans unpack the role of a Director of Artistic Sign Language, navigating the research process, dramaturgy, ASL translations and production team dynamics. Instructors proposed ways to balance timelines and maximize capacity in the process.
Several candidates were then mentored by the Vox team in the field for shows, including Nassim at The Huntington, & Juliet for Broadway in Boston, SIX The Musical at Emerson Colonial Theatre, and Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. Our workshop attendees took advantage of the ASL-interpreted shows and experienced these practices and community feedback in real time! This was an opportunity to process and frame the work directly with the audience they are impacting. Having space and time to reflect on the artistry, good practices, production process, team Dynamics and Community impact is crucial to Arts accessibility! Hosting this Workshop is a way that Vox boosts and supports theatrical accessibility work in Massachusetts and beyond. Vox is proud to host this first DASL workshop series and looks forward to more ASL-interpreted shows, empowering more Deaf Artists and broadening the Deaf theater community exchange.
This Zoom workshop is intended to be an introduction to increase the number of providers and the cultural competency of ASL for live events in Massachusetts and beyond. It is open free of charge to Deaf actors, artists, poets, writers, and those interested in the field of theater, performances and access who want to learn about theatrical access. There will be hands-on activities in class and brief at-home exercises in a fun, supportive learning environment. We will touch on the full DASL life cycle including translation, writing, performing, community building, the live theater experience, delivery, and evaluation of Theatrical ASL.
Our project goal is primarily to increase the number of Deaf Directors of Artistic Sign Language. We hope individuals not currently working in this field but who have the skill set and cultural competency and life experience to contribute greatly to this field to gain income and revenue from this training. We hope to enrich the audience of theater consumers in MA by allowing them a wider array of community perspectives.
Project made possible by The Haymarket Peoples Fund, which funds anti-racist grassroots organizations across the region that believe change is possible. We’ve been behind the scenes, providing funding to almost every major social justice movement in New England since 1974.
Image Description: A black dotted background with white text in all caps reads “Think Outside the Vox brings to you DASL Seminar Series”
Two people sign for the duration of the video. They stand outside with a neatly stacked woodpile behind them in a woodsy area.
BOTH: Hello! Hello.
KRISTIN: My name is Kristin Johnson. (She spells her name in ASL). My self description looks like this: (she turns around to show the back of her shirt.) Chris signs “It reads, ‘Anti-ableist.’” [the braille and ASL spelling is underneath the printed word]. Chris continues signing what it says on the shirt: “Kristin Johnson, a tall, slender Deaf woman with shoulder length brown hair in a ponytail and I communicate with sign language.
[Kristin turns back around and gestures to Chris. Chris begins to sign.]
CHRIS: I am Christopher Robinson [name sign is a C and R handshape at the opposite shoulder, then he spells his name.] I’m a hearing black male wearing a purple hat and shirt with the letters VOX on the lapel. I am bearded as well.
KRISTIN: We represent an organization called Think Outside the Vox, or Vox for short, as shown on our shirts. We have exciting news to share with you: if you are Deaf, DeafBlind, Hard of Hearing or a Deaf interpreter, if you’re involved in the arts – museum work, theater and performing arts, or love language and translation, then this is for you. We’ve noticed that when it comes to museums, theater and the arts, many of the resources and funding is funneled into ASL interpreting access, and not for DASLs or Deaf art – it is dwindling. We’ve decided to create a DASL – a Directors of Artistic Sign Language training, for you to become a DASL.
CHRIS: This DASL training involves resources, materials, and workshops on Zoom with a group to discuss and test ideas in art spaces. DASL training participants will go beyond building skills and be able to receive mentorship to develop those skills by experiencing live theater, that will then be deployed in the community, and allow the DASL community to grow. So who’s paying for this workshop if you join? No cost! This training is sponsored by Think Outside the Vox with the support of the Haymarket People’s Fund in order for you to join for free. If you’re interested in joining us, refer to the information in the caption below. To sign up, fill out the form with your information and we will send you more details about participation.
KRISTIN: Think Outside the Vox prioritizes closing the gap of inequity by creating this opportunity for you to join this program.
[Both give smiles and double thumbs up]
CHRIS: Come join! See you soon!
A black screen with white text reads: Dates and details at thinkoutsidethevox.org
ASL THEATER TERMINOLOGY GLOSSARY
VOX is currently working on a joint venture with Open Door Theater and Joey Caverly, Acclaimed, Deaf Director/Actor/Artist to create and publish in an open format, Theater specific ASL glossaries for staff training and culture shift, using universal design principles to teach stage managers and backstage crew ASL specifically for use in the wings backstage for silent communication and communication with Deaf actors/staff, basic vocabulary for cuing and additional module including basic front of the house vocabulary to train all ushers, ticket sellers and forward facing volunteers greetings, emergency protocol and basic directions, for ticketing, concessions and restroom wayfinding. We hope to codify some of this language and develop training modules to disseminate to other theater organizations to perhaps innovate backstage communications and front of the house ASL communication standards. Release scheduled for Spring 2025
Canvas AD Cohort Culturally Responsive AD Training Platform Portal