Stagetext, a deaf-led charity dedicated to making arts and culture accessible, has developed Stagetext+, a captioning software. This has been informed by deaf audiences and has been developed to put quality access centre stage, based on 25 years of expertise.
The new open-standard software is being rolled out across the theatre captioning landscape following a successful trial at Colchester’s Mercury Theatre.
Stagetext+ has been:
- Designed with deaf audiences in mind
- Works on multiple devices
- Supports more captioning more often
Stagetext+ can deliver captions simultaneously across multiple devices – from caption boxes and TV screens to tablets and phones – whilst maintaining the highest quality standards for deaf access.
All Stagetext captions will be delivered by Stagetext qualified captioners and operators to ensure perfect accuracy and timing, enabling deaf audience members to have the same equal experience of live theatre as their hearing friends and family.
Stagetext+ works with our new supply of large and small screens, and is designed to meet your venue’s needs, in any space, from the West End to studio theatres. It will enable us to caption in places that haven’t been possible before now, making more performances accessible than ever before.
There are 18 million adults in the UK who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing, which means 1 in 3 people may benefit from subtitles and captions to enjoy arts and culture. Yet, text-based deaf access is not as widely available as it could be. The flexibility of Stagetext+ will help expand deaf access throughout the cultural sector, supporting you to welcome and include your deaf audiences.
If you have questions or want to know more, visit our FAQs page. Or get in touch using the form below.
We will be rolling out Stagetext+ to captioners from 2026. Get in touch to see how Stagetext+ can help your venue deliver more deaf access more often.
