League of Chicago Theatres Access Calendar
The League of Chicago Theatres is committed to collaborating with Chicago-area theatres to make live theatre accessible to everyone. Our calendar enables patrons with disabilities to look for upcoming performances based on their specific access requirements. The calendar includes Touch Tours (TT), ASL-Interpreted (ASL), Audio-Described (AD), Open-Captioned (OC) and Sensory-Friendly performances.
Chicago’s Accessibility Resources
Please send additional resources to our team at info@chicagoplays.com.
5 Star Interpreting
5 Star Interpreting’s mission is to eliminate communication gaps by matching qualified American Sign Language interpreters with opportunities to enhance accessibility for individuals who use sign language as their preferred mode of communication. Contact: Phone – 801-960-3046 | Email – scheduling@5starinterpreting.com
Artists Breaking Limits & Expectations (A.B.L.E.)
A.B.L.E. offers accessible performing arts programs for disabled individuals over the age of 15, with a focus on adults 22+ who are the most underserved. These programs equip them with transferable skills once they are no longer in the school system. Contact: Email – katie@ableensemble.com
Chicago Hearing Society
Provides communication access, hearing and assistive technologies, and support services for persons who are Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing. Contact: Phone – 773-248-9121 (Main Phone Number) | Videophone – 773-904-0154
Cultural Access Collaborative
Cultural Access Collaborative, formerly Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium, facilitates a dynamic community of cultural administrators and people with disabilities to remove barriers in Illinois’ cultural organizations. Free opportunities include professional development workshops, an equipment loan program, and an access calendar. Contact: Email – Info@CulturalAccessCollab.org (General Inquiries) | Equip@CulturalAccessCollab.org (Equipment Loans)
Dillon Reporting Service (Tina Dillon)
A widely certified service providing Court Reporting, Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART), Captioning services, and Audio Transcription in the greater Chicagoland area. Contact: Phone – 630-254-5652 | Email – tina@dillonreporting.com (preferred method of contact)
Faith Interpreting Services
ASL Interpretation. Contact: Phone – 224-520-9757 | Email – faithinterpreting@gmail.com
Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission (IDHHC)
The Illinois Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission (IDHHC) is the state agency that advocates for and promotes legal requirements to ensure effective communication for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in Illinois. Our key resource for theaters seeking interpreters is the official directory of licensed sign language interpreters in Illinois. We do not provide direct interpreting services or handle interpreter requests.
Contact: Phone – 217-557-4495 (Voice)| Phone – 217-303-8010 (Video)| Phone – 888-261-2698 (TTY) | Email – DHH.Communications@Illinois.gov (General Questions, Programs, & Feedback) | Email – DHH.Interpreter@Illinois.gov (Interpreter Licensure, Certification & Testing)| Email – DHH.Training@Illinois.gov (Professional Development & Training) | Email – DHH.Chair@Illinois.gov for Chairperson of the Commission
LMH Certified Reporting (LeAnn Hibler)
Certified Realtime Captioner (CRC). Onsite and remote CART captioning since 2000. Contact: Phone – 815-922-6221 (call or text) | Email – lmhreporting@aol.com
Mosaico Interpreting Company
We’re proud to be one of Chicago’s first BIPOC-owned sign language interpreting agencies and a designated agency for the Chicago Mayor’s Office partnering with MOPD and DCASE. Our team specializes in many areas, one of them being theater, concerts, and performance interpreting, and we also provide professional captioning services.
Additionally we provide interpreter coordination and targeted promotional services for the ASL-using community, for theatre companies across the city. With a strong roster of experienced local interpreters, we’re committed to making events accessible with both cultural and professional care. Contact: Phone – 630-765-0264 |Email – info@mosaicointerpreting.com
Disability Pride – Shared Resources
Articles:
- This recent article from Forbes interviews several different disabled creatives and talks more about the need for the powers-that-be to stretch their imaginations about who can be cast and what accessible productions can look like.
- Based on the questions that came up around how disabled actors can find opportunities, this Howlround article looks at some of the barriers to entering the industry and some suggested collective action.
Socials / Video:
- Facebook group Trained Actors with Real Disabilities for Film & TV often shares casting calls and training opportunities.
- Patrice: The Movie (streaming on Hulu) follows one couple’s story and the “marriage penalty”.
Template for Freelancers:
- Access-Rider-for-Creative-Freelance-Practitioners-Open-Template.docx
- This template for freelancers has been formed to help project partners, venues and collaborators understand how they can support artists with regards to their access needs.
Savings Account:
ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, As Amended
The link above goes to a general page that includes links to all sections, including:
Subchapter I – Employment [Title I]
Subchapter II – Public Services [Title II]
Subchapter III – Public Accommodations and Services by Private Entities [Title III]
Subchapter IV – Miscellaneous Provisions [Title V]
ADA Design Standards
The ADA Standards for Accessible Design—along with the Title II and Title III regulations—say what is required for a building or facility to be physically accessible to people with disabilities.
The ADA Standards for Accessible Design (“ADA Standards”) cover:
- Newly constructed buildings and facilities;
- Alterations—such as, renovations and other changes that affect usability—made to buildings and facilities;
- Making architectural changes in existing state and local government buildings to provide “program access”; and
- Removing architectural barriers that are easily accomplishable without much difficulty or expense in existing buildings of businesses.
American Printing House
Since 1858, The American Printing House for the Blind has operated in Louisville, Kentucky as the world’s largest nonprofit organization creating accessible learning experiences through educational, workplace, and independent living products and services for people who are blind and visually impaired.
Home Page
Resources Page
Arts Midwest Accessibility Center
This page holds resources designed to help arts and cultural organizations in making programming, services, and communications more accessible.
Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium
Interested in offering accessibility services for people with disabilities at your theatre but don’t know where to start? The Chicago Cultural Accessibility Consortium has a number of resources available to help your company including an accessible event calendar, equipment loans and events. Download the CCAC Resource document to get started.
Easy Access Chicago
What You’ll Find On This Site
- Information for Visitors and Residents with A Wide Range of Disabilities, as well as for Older Travelers
- Detailed Access Reports for Over 100 Attractions
- Access Information on Midway and O’Hare Airports
- Listings of Accessible Tours of All Types
- A Guide to Local Accessible Transportation, Public and Private
- Chicago Insider Tips to Help You Make the Most of Your Stay
- A Guide to Adapted Sports and Recreation
- Tips and Resources for Families
- A Database of Accessible Hotels and Restaurants Searchable by Specific Access Features, Location and Price
- Listings of Key Disability-Related Services and Resources
- General Tips for Hassle-Free Travel
Great Lakes ADA Center
The Great Lakes ADA Center’s mission is to increase awareness and knowledge with the ultimate goal of achieving voluntary compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. This is accomplished within targeted audiences through provision of customized training, expert assistance, and dissemination of information developed by various sources, including the federal agencies responsible for enforcement of the ADA. We are not an enforcement or regulatory agency, but a helpful resource supporting the ADA’s mission to “make it possible for everyone with a disability to live a life of freedom and equality.”
Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD)
As an integral part of the Kennedy Center’s Access/VSA International Network, the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD) program advances the full inclusion of people with disabilities in arts and culture. With a focus on expanding the breadth and scope of accessible programming, LEAD provides an opportunity for professionals in the field to develop best practices and resources; engage in conversations with colleagues and experts from around the world; and learn practical methods for designing inclusive arts experiences and environments.
Learn More About the LEAD Program & Conference Here
Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities
The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) works to make Chicago the most accessible city in the nation on behalf of residents and visitors with disabilities.
US Access Board’s Guide to ADA Accessibility Standards
This guide explains requirements in the current editions of the ADA Standards issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Transportation (DOT). It was developed by the U.S. Access Board in cooperation with DOJ and DOT. It is important to use this guide along with a complete copy of the ADA Standards.
US Access Board’s Guide to ABA (Architectural Barriers Act) Accessibility Standards
This guide explains requirements in the current editions of the ABA Standards issued by DOD, GSA, and USPS, which are substantively the same as each is closely based on the Board’s updated ABA guidelines (2004). (HUD has yet to update its ABA Standards and continues to apply the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards to facilities under its jurisdiction.) It is important to use this guide along with a complete copy of the ABA Standards as it explains, but does not contain or reprint, the text of the ABA Standards.
Additional Resources
Universal Design overview from the University at Buffalo’s Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access
- This resource explains the historical context, principles, and goals of Universal Design.
- On April 24, 2024, the Federal Register published the Department of Justice’s final rule updating its regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The final rule has specific requirements about how to ensure that web content and mobile applications (apps) are accessible to people with disabilities.
Building Inclusive Resource Map for BIPOC Disabled Communities in Chicagoland
- The Chicagoland Disabled People of Color Coalition, in collaboration with the Institute on Disability and Human Development, is proud to launch the Resource Map Project—a growing digital map designed to connect BIPOC disabled individuals and allies with inclusive, culturally affirming, and accessible resources across the Chicagoland area. They encourage the submission of more locations as their project grows.
The Red Kite Project at Chicago Children’s Theatre
- The Red Kite Project at Chicago Children’s Theatre is a series of unique and innovative programs for youth on the autism spectrum and their families, as well as initiatives and productions that make our theatrical and education programming accessible to young people with developmental disabilities and other accessibility needs.
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s SoundShirt
- Lyric Opera of Chicago is proud to be the first opera company in the world to bring audiences who are deaf or hard of hearing a real-time, fully immersive touch sensation of live music. In partnership with the City of Chicago’s Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, and designed and built by London-based CuteCircuit, the SoundShirt experience was refined through extensive testing at Lyric. The SoundShirt is a groundbreaking fusion of fashion and technology. It provides nuanced, physical vibrations of the opera’s music and voices through a comfortable jacket that is light and fun to wear.
HowlRound Theatre Commons: Disability and Accessibility Page
- HowlRound routinely publishes articles and videos on the topics of disability and accessibility. This includes pieces on disability aesthetics, accessibility measures for artists and audience members, and work created by artists with disabilities.
“Wish You Were Here” by Gabriela Furtado Coutinho (American Theatre Magazine)
- Gabriela Furtado Coutinho conducts a roundtable on how to create radically welcoming access at the theatre.