Eye Care Providers Help Arts Lovers See Through Others' Eyes

Four central Pennsylvania eye care providers have teamed up with Penn State's Center for the Performing Arts to help supply audio description to arts patrons with sight loss.

The eye care professionals have contributed to a fund that will provide tickets discounted by $10 each to sight-loss patrons who want to attend selected events at which audio description is offered.

The audio description service, known as View Via Headphones, enables theatergoers to expand their understanding through live verbal description of the visual elements of performances. An enhancement offered to all patrons who have purchased tickets, audio description is especially helpful to people with sight loss. It can also improve information processing for people with learning disabilities.

Participants are: J. A. Alianiello, a State College-based optometrist; Central Pennsylvania Eye Associates, Ltd.; Nittany Eye Associates, which has offices in State College, Spring Mills and Tyrone; and a State College eye physician and surgeon who wishes to remain anonymous.

Discounted tickets are available to qualifying patrons for: Show Boat at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 17; Carmen at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 1; Les Misérables at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 31; and Phantom, The American Musical Sensation at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 17.  

The center partners with The Sight-Loss Support Group of Central Pennsylvania to provide View Via Headphones. The program is supported by a grant from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. For more information about audio description, contact the Arts Ticket Center, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, at (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, phone (800) 278-7849. To make a contribution to help support the audio description service, contact Diane Bloom at (814) 863-1167 or via e-mail at deb10@psu.edu.