blind

Ticketing & Venue

So I was kindly given the tickets by The Mercury Theatre in Colchester! They were incredibly helpful! There is a wide range of ticket options available. You can choose either: a disabled person ticket, or a visually impaired ticket, or if you have an assistance dog, there is also an assistance dog ticket. There is a companion ticket option at £1.50 that can be added with any of those tickets.

They are very geared up to helping people with all disabilities, not just blind or visually impaired people! All staff are able to offer sighted guided assistance should you require it! If you also have a Guide Dog then the front-of-house staff, are very accommodating and will happily look after your Guide Dog during the performance. If however, you would like your to be with you during the performance then that is something you can also do easily!

Seating

So in terms of seating, you are able to book any seat within the auditorium that you require. At this particular performance, I was given seats H 21 and H22. For me, this proved to be a little tricky when it came to certain darker scenes as I was unable to fully make out who was who. I was somehow able to do this due to do this as these scenes being in the second half of the show I knew which character was speaking as I had worked out which character was who due to their voice! If I had to recommend a certain row I would recommend row D if you have Low Vision, as this is close enough where you are still able at least I am able to see the performers’ facial expressions. Which is something I like to do, but you might be different. But if you have No Vision then anywhere in the auditorium you will have the same experience.

The Show

Overall, the show was very good, You have to consider that all the actors in the show are not professional. But considering this, some of the cast had amazing singing voices! Sadly I am unable to mention certain cast members by name as on my particular evening the programmes were sadly not delivered in time, and at the time of writing this review, there is no cast list on the Mercury website. But you all really were amazing and you all should be really proud of yourselves!

Throughout the show, there were some technical difficulties with microphones and such so was a little difficult to hear what some of the cast were saying at times, but this was opening night so I think we can forgive them for the odd teething problems!

Accessibility

In terms of accessibility for blind and visually impaired people sadly, it is very limited. Unfortunately, there is no Audio Description which I feel these days is a must and should be at least one per show that comes in. But looking at the website there doesn’t seem to be an Audio Described performance, hopefully, this is something that the Colchester Operatic Society can look to change for future performances, as this is disappointing to see. However, there are two captioned performances available. So check out The Mercury Theatre’s website for more details, click here to find out more!

Overall

This was a really fun show to watch, you called tell that all the company thoroughly enjoyed their time on stage and you could really feel the passion they all had for performing, I think some could really go far if they kept at it! The show is running from 10th – 18th September multiple shows a day so this is definitely a watch if you would like to see some up-and-coming talented and you could say you saw them first!

Hi everyone!

I am so happy to be back in the theatre again after so long out of one! As well as be able to review shows for you again!

The Sherlock Holmes stories are a collection of stories I have been a huge fan of since I was a child. I have watched and read most of the main stories and I do have my personal favourites. There is just something about Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson that just attracts them to you as any long life fan of the duo would know. can be anything from the action and suspense, to be in awe of Holmes’ genius and brilliant mind!

So When I got the option to go and review at Sherlock Holmes show I was shall we say a little excited…? Okay, I was very much excited! The story that Ken Wen Ludwig went with was the iconic Sherlock Holmes story ‘The Hound Of Baskerville’. If you talked to any Sherlock Holmes fan and ask them to name their top five stories I can guarantee this would be one of them!

‘Baskerville’ has tried to keep too original sorry as possible, however, it is slightly adapted as this show is a comedy version. Now hold your horses Holmes’ fans, I had the same thought as you originally of ‘oh dear, what have they done.’ But actually, I was pleasantly surprised!

Imagine of Holmes in a purple blazer holding a black and silver cane, looking concerned, with Waston just behind him looking at Holmes expectantly. — Photo Credit: Pamela Rath

A quick review would be, from beginning to end I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. The show is very light-hearted and caters for everyone and anyone including families and children, being the story that it is, there are some scary bits here and there and there is a lot of talk of crime, murder and death as you would come to expect, but being a comedy it tackles these subjects very well even for young children and makes enormous fun of them, but there are some serious moments in there too.

Before beginning to end the show will have you in stitches both children and adults alike! The acting from all the cast was amazing and keep in with the style and mood of the show they were going for, Richard Ede played an excellent Sherlock Holmes’ he made the character his own, not as serious and in some cases cold as I believe Sherlock Holmes to be but light-hearted and welcoming which was brilliant as it set with the rest of the show brilliantly.

Dr Waston played by Eric Stroud kept the audience well informed with the story and what was going on as Dr Waston should! He came across as more down to earth and open than Holmes, but that is as it should be. Both Eric and Richard looked great together as the famous duo and bounced well off each other! You could tell that all the cast had a close bond which is always so nice to see!

Imagine shows Holmes and Waston on the Baskerville moor at night with lanterns walking through the fog of the moors looking very alert! — Photo Credit: Pamela Rath

The use of sound was expertly done, in particular scenes which involve the hound, there were times where it felt like the hound was either behind or the side of you! That’s something I haven’t seen in a long time so well done! There was a great use of costume, during the show Dr Waston has to walk in some very strong wind so his customer was very dramatic and over the top, both for the scene and comic effect which was a great laugh. Other small comic moments make the show I real pleasure to watch and is a great night out for all the family!

People Who Are Visually Impaired: I think this is a great show for you to go and see. The use of light and colour is expertly done and I don’t think you will have any problems here. If you have very limped but some vision you might miss some of the small comic moments during the show, but these don’t take anything from the story so you wouldn’t miss anything. I would recommend either sitting in rows D or E for the best view. But if you need to sit closer to see then by all means do.

People Who Are Blind Or Have No Vision: I think you will have little problems with this show story-wise, as all the important parts of the story are narrated by Dr Waston, and most of the show has very little action. But if you would like the full effect and no to miss any of the comedy be it big or small I could recommend you book an Audio Described performance, these will include a touch tour before the show as well so you will get the full experience. Details of this can be found on The Mercury Theatre’s website under the ‘Access For All’ section.

‘Baskerville’ is running at The Mercury Theatre in Colchester, from Friday 6th until Sunday 22nd August 2021! Book your tickets now, you won’t be disappointed!

The VI Critic

The VI Critic' is a blog that reviews shows from both Local Theatre to the bright lights of London's West End, from a Visual Impairment perspective!

Colchester Operatic Society’s ‘Fame!’

Hi Everyone,