Disability Theatre Manifesto

Abstract

For my thesis project, I have researched the current state of disability theatre in an effort to determine which practices are helpful or harmful to disability theatre. I have investigated: the inaccessibility of mainstream theatre, the connotations behind the word ‘disabled’, disability theatre’s past, disability theatre’s current state, who can play what role, professionalism in theatre, reviews, disclosures, methods to remove barriers, and calls to action. The end product of this research is an annotated manifesto that will be transformed into a presentation for Inquiry at Queen’s. The rationale behind this manifesto is to contribute to the conversation about barriers to the disabled community, and be a reference point for how theatre artists can be more inclusive.