Theatre, disability and wellbeing: addressing best practice and creative outcomes across disabled and non-disabled communities through an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.

Journal article

Worthington, N. and Sextou, P 2024. Theatre, disability and wellbeing: addressing best practice and creative outcomes across disabled and non-disabled communities through an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Arts & Health: An International Journal for Research, Policy and Practice. https://doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2024.2350505
AuthorsWorthington, N. and Sextou, P
AbstractIn the context of ongoing underrepresentation of disabled people and shifts in the theatre industry, this article examines the significance of personal disability understandings and how these are interpreted in relation to the wellbeing of disabled people in theatre. The findings presented are part of an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis; an interdisciplinary study detailing experiences of theatre practice and disability among professional actors and directors in theatres that are funded by Arts Council England. One of the six emergent themes from interviews, , assists in considering disability understandings and aspects of actors' wellbeing in this article. It details interpersonal and emotional competencies required of disabled people in day-to-day practice; these relate to confidence, risk, empathy, compromise, value, and contribution. Routes to building accessibility in theatre are proposed as a shared and personal endeavour; value is placed on learning from disability as crucial in preserving wellbeing, creativity, and effective arts practices across disabled and non-disabled communities.
Keywordsarts and health; Wellbeing; disability; accessibility; theatre
Year2024
JournalArts & Health: An International Journal for Research, Policy and Practice
PublisherTaylor & Francis
ISSN1753-3023
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2024.2350505
Official URLhttps://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17533015.2024.2350505
Publication dates
Online08 May 2024
Publication process dates
Accepted25 Apr 2024
Deposited25 Apr 2024
Accepted author manuscript
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Restricted
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File Access Level
Open
Output statusPublished
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Publications router: Date 2024-05-08 of type 'publication_date' with format 'electronic' included in notification

Page range1-14
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