Building on the success of their BSL-Interpreted and Relaxed performances over the last few years, EMT have announced that the Thursday (2nd April 2026, 7:30PM) performance of Footloose: The Musical will feature BSL-Interpretation and Audio Description.
A huge part of the ethos of EMT as a company and a community is inclusion and the removal of barriers. Not only for our members, but for our audiences too. “Community” should mean everyone in that community. Committing to a BSL-interpreted performance each year shows that we’re willing to put time, money and thought into inclusion, not just talk about it. Equality of access is also a personal passion of mine, after working for a charity supporting Deaf and hard of hearing people for 10 years before moving on to a charity supporting disabled people. During this time, I was heavily involved in supporting the launch of the Edinburgh Deaf Festival. This experience really highlighted the severe lack of and unwillingness to provide BSL access in ‘mainstream’ arts spaces.
EMT may be a small local company, but we wanted to do better. Without BSL interpretation, a whole group of potential theatregoers is effectively told, “This isn’t for you.” Offering at least one BSL-interpreted performance each year is a clear, practical way for EMT to say the opposite: you are welcome here, you belong here, and your experience matters as much as anyone else’s. We have a proud history of striving to make our shows accessible to the BSL community going back to 2011 when we began rehearsals for our fully BSL-integrated production of Sweeney Todd. This was a groundbreaking show for us, in which each principal character was played by two people – one performer delivering the role in English, and the other performer standing side by side with their counterpart performing in BSL. We performed several BSL integrated Fringe shows in the following years, until unfortunately circumstances limited our capacity to continue – but it was always something we wanted to bring back.
Fast forward to 2023 – we refreshed our accessibility strategy and ensured we had dedicated funds in place to support it. Our phased Accessibility Improvement Strategy also included our inaugural fully relaxed performance during our 2025 production of Beauty and the Beast, and for Footloose we are currently working out the logistics of offering Audio Description in the Church Hill Theatre.
Another of EMT’s values is giving people a safe space to grow and develop their theatre skills – be that on stage or off stage. Over the past three years, we have been able to offer a welcoming space for BSL interpreters undergoing training in theatre & performance interpreting to hone their skills.
We’re reaching people who simply wouldn’t have come otherwise. Audience members have told us they chose our shows because there was a BSL-interpreted or relaxed option.
After Beauty and the Beast (2024), I spoke to Deaf BSL users who had come along. They told me that musical theatre “isn’t something they’d normally go to see”, but they “gave it a chance because it had a BSL accessible performance” and they were surprised that they really enjoyed it. They also said that they would look out for our shows in the future because they had such a good time!
One parent was so grateful for the relaxed performance because it meant they could bring their two year old without worrying about them being too noisy or moving about too much and disturbing other audience members. Without that option, they would have stayed away.
We have seen a more diverse audience attending our shows which was exactly what we hoped for when we launched the new strategy. Our cast members have also learned a lot over the past few years through having exposure to BSL and interpreted performances being a non-negotiable feature of our shows. They now really look forward to having our interpreters in the rehearsal room and on stage with them. The interpreters are very much members of our cast too!
This will be the first year we will offer Audio Description for our show and we’re currently working with a professional in this field to work out the logistics of doing this in the Church Hill Theatre. It is proving to be a little bit tricky due to the space – but we are determined to find a solution!
We want to give people a safe space to grow and develop their theatre skills – be that on stage or off stage. This is something we’ve now started, but will continue to offer and to build upon!
We are listening to our audiences. The feedback we have received over the past few years has been incredible, but we are always striving to do better. We welcome any suggestions from our audiences on how we can improve our accessibility. As a small company run by volunteers, it might take us a while to get everything right – but we are determined to make sure we are producing theatre that everyone in the community can access and get as much enjoyment and fun out of as we do from the stage!
BSL interpreter Danielle Rennie, who has interpreted all of EMT’s recent accessible performances, has become a key part of that shared experience. She describes returning to EMT as “like being part of a family”, a place where she feels supported and creatively involved. “I’m absolutely thrilled to be working with EMT on their production of Footloose,” she says, reflecting on the collaborative relationships she has built across the cast and creative team.
Preparing for a musical of this scale begins months in advance. Danielle immerses herself in the story, studies different productions online and translates the songs early, often the most challenging but rewarding part of the work. At rehearsals she enjoys watching the choreography grow and finding ways to echo those movements in her signing. Every translation is practiced and refined with feedback from her partner, who is Deaf, ensuring the final performance is as clear and expressive as possible. Above all, she hopes Deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences will “feel the energy of the music” and experience the same excitement as everyone else when the curtain rises.
Danielle’s work on EMT productions helped open the door to performance interpreting and inspired her to take that passion further. We’re extremely proud to see her continue that journey through the founding of her own company, Sign@Events, which provides live performance BSL interpreting at arts, cultural and community events across Scotland. You can find out more on Instagram at @signatevents.
This sense of connection is echoed by audience member Jack, who has attended EMT’s previous two interpreted performances. For him, having BSL interpretation available makes the experience “wonderful” and “so visual and beautiful”. Seeing the story unfold in BSL brings the performance to life. He explains that the interpreters make the show “understandable, fun and exciting”, and the impact has been strong enough that he is returning again, this time bringing his brother, uncle and friends with him. “I’d recommend it to everyone I know,” he says.
EMT are always looking to enhance accessibility to their performances where possible.
If so, we’d love to hear from you!
Please drop us a DM on Social Media, or send us an email at hello@edinburghmusictheatre.co.uk