How would you describe abstract modern dance to a visually-impaired friend? Yes, they can hear the music, but if you couldn’t discuss story or character, how would you convey the stage action? Several international ballet companies have been doing excellent work around narrative ballet – including Scottish Ballet, who since 1998 has pioneered an ambitious project bringing narrative productions to a visually impaired audience. Now they are taking a bold step into uncharted territory and extending this venture into contemporary, non-narrative pieces. At least one audience member at the company’s trial performances this autumn had no idea what to expect. Sally Clay, who was born
blind and had never attended a ballet, decided that ‘it was worth going purely to broaden my horizons and discover a new art form.’ Even so, she had reservations: ‘if you’ve never seen a performance, it must be very difficult to get
[everything] across.’
An audio description performance at Scottish Ballet is unique in a number of respects.
Before the actual performance, a ‘touch-tour’ is provided. This allows the attendees the opportunity to interact with the set, costumes, performers and with the describers. With a
narrative ballet, there is an account of the plot and characters before the start of the performance, and the live audio description begins as the curtain rises, synchronising the script with the choreography.
For their new project, the company has been working alongside the charity VocalEyes, which specialises in audio description. As Scottish Ballet’s resident describer, Emma-Jane McHenry is involved in the whole process. ‘I begin by watching rehearsals and absorbing the movement, costumes, set, and choreography,’ she says. ‘I just watch and listen. It is only after gaining a feel for the production that
I begin to take notes and formulate the vocabulary required to describe what is happening. There are so many intricacies that shape a performance, that it becomes an organic process.

I focus on the movement and let other factors develop around it.’ ‘People attending performances have their own opinions on how much information we should give them,’ she considers. ‘It is a very personal experience – formulating images in
one’s head using words and sounds.’
Roz Chalmers, Artistic Consultant for VocalEyes, sees it as ‘the art of describing the physical.’ This, predictably enough, is a very demanding proposition. ‘The sheer amount of writing is phenomenal’, says Chalmers. ‘Each script is about 50 to 60 pages, written in a way that closely mirrors the performance in both sound and substance. Scottish Ballet wanted to take the project to new levels; turning theories of movement into speech was the next step.’ This was realised over the autumn, when three contemporary pieces were turned into audio-descriptive productions. They included Ride the Beast, a piece by Stephen Petronio set to
music by Radiohead, For MG - The Movie, from American contemporary dance maker Trisha Brown, and the premiere of artistic director Ashley Page’s Pennies from Heaven. None of them has a conventional story, so they presented a daunting challenge to the describers – and to the visually-impaired audience members, many of whom, like Sally Clay, were attending their first ballet.
Clay herself was pleasantly surprised: ‘I got far more out of it than I expected. I really
enjoyed it. I felt the first piece was very contemporary; the second very industrial and intriguing, and the third almost nostalgic, with a noticeable intensity.’
McHenry focused on the quality of description and spent a great deal of time coordinating the music with this. ‘It made for a more enriching experience.

Working on contemporary pieces over the autumn was so inspiring. The pieces allowed me to get far more into the process.

I was able to look far beyond simple movements. I had to focus on giving the listeners space to picture what was happening, and

giving myself space to become further immersed in the piece and heighten the quality of description.’

As the project has expanded in its breadth, it has also done so in its appeal. Ailsa-Mary
Gold, Director of Education for the Scottish Ballet, claims that the audio-described
productions have received praise from a broad demographic: ‘At a recent feedback session, we heard from a man who had never been to a ballet production before, but had come along with his sister [both were visually impaired]. Although he was not expecting much, he had a wonderful time. His responses were full of enthusiasm.’ McHenry loves talking to the attendees and
finds it helpful in improving her style. ‘Through the feedback sessions we have been able to explore the possibility of working with two describers simultaneously. This can be seen in Sleeping Beauty and, we believe, has added to the
whole experience.’ Although initially sceptical, Sally Clay was convinced: ‘It was a total success.
I enjoyed the feedback sessions – it feels good to be able to express both your praise and concerns. Because of these sessions, it will keep changing for the better and this is a very exciting prospect for an audience member.’
Roz Chalmers agrees: ‘Like other art forms, visually impaired performances should be a fixture of any ballet. We are simply meeting demand. Patrons of ballet are a fringe group, but there are a significant number within this group that really want the service.’ Sally Clay confirms that, having been exposed to the ballet, she is part of that group. ‘For someone who was born blind, there was nothing to lose,’ she says.
‘You can show up with an open mind. I had no preconceptions and this made it a real success.
I went to the ballet, when I wouldn’t ordinarily, and it has opened up new avenues for me. I will definitely go again.’