Hey everyone,

Does anyone know of a play that has a blind female part? I have a friend that wants to start working with our community theatre but she is blind. She has a beautiful soprano voice and I think she would be a great asset. She is hesitant to join because she thinks no one would cast her.

Thanks

Renea

 

 

Originally posted by renea_mr Does anyone know of a play that has a blind female part?

"Wait Until Dark" -- female lead is blind, but is usually played by a sighted actress. I would tell your friend, however, not to restrict herself to "blind" roles, especially if she has little or no theater experience. Directors of "Wait Until Dark" are looking for a GOOD actress, not a blind one. And if she hasn't proven herself in smaller roles first, a director will be reluctant to take a chance on her for a lead. She needs to get her feet wet -- that means go to auditions and see what happens. I'd suggest she contact the theater ahead of time to get a copy of the script to prepare for any audition. You didn't say whether she's completely blind or if she has some limited sight, but she'd need to prove that she can handle the work, especially memorizing lines. I should think her ability to work from a script would be the biggest question in a director's mind -- it shouldn't matter how she does it, whether it's working with a partner or whatever, but if she can learn her lines, has talent, and is right for a part, her lack of sight shouldn't preclude her from being cast.

We work with an actress with profound hearing loss -- I don't know how she does it, but she's got one of the most gorgeous singing voices I've ever heard and is an extremely talented comedic actress. She reads lips and when she's singing, she can feel the drum beats to keep time, but the only other thing I can figure is that she has perfect pitch and can at least hear herself to some small extent (she does wear some pretty powerful hearing aids). Her handicap doesn't hold her back at all!

The Nightingale is a great role for a soprano in "Once Upon a Mattress,"
and she wouldn't have to move about much since the bird's in a cage.
She could also double as one of the many ladies of the court, like Princess
13. In other words, I wouldn't limit myself to vision-challenged roles;
most theaters will cast an actor for his/her talent, not for their handicaps.
I know I would!

There is a play version of "A Patch of Blue" - Selina (female lead) is a blind woman living with abusive mother and an alcoholic grandfather in near poverty in New York.