LONDON’S LW THEATRES TO ROLL OUT GALAPRO ACROSS ALL
RESIDENT PRODUCTIONS IN ITS SIX WEST END THEATRES
LW Theatres in London announced recently that they will be rolling out GalaPro, the revolutionary app technology designed to provide an inclusive experience in live entertainment venues, across all the resident shows in their six West End theatres. The move makes it the first West End theatre company to introduce closed-captioning and audio description
technology for audiences across their theatre estate.
GalaPro, which is available in several Broadway productions in New York, is already live in the following West End productions: Adelphi (Back to the Future), the Gillian Lynne Theatre (The Lehman Trilogy) and Theatre Royal Drury Lane (Frozen). Other venues are planning to rollout the app in the upcoming months.
The GalaPro Mobile App offers closed captions and audio description via smartphones and tablets. Using the same technology already in use in New York, the Sound Associates CS6 midi show controller enables “on demand” services, making live theatre accessible at every seat, for every performance.
“We are very excited to see GalaPro rolled out across the resident productions in our six West End venues,” says Darren Atkins, Chief Operating Office of LW Theaters. He added “We believe we are the first West End theatre group to introduce this technology across the board for those who require closed captioning and audio description to enjoy the magic of live entertainment. This is just one element of our ongoing commitment to solve barriers for our guests with access requirements. We acknowledge there is – and will always be – more to do and we are committed to doing all we can to continue to improve accessibility for everyone, regardless of their individual needs.”
The GalaPro mobile app, developed with the help of Sound Associates, offers closed caption and audio description on demand via smart phones and tablets. Mark Annunziato, Vice President of Operations and Engineering at Sound Associates says he is “thrilled to be part of LW Theatres mission to implement the GalaPro App in their West End Theatres. We applaud their commitment and dedication to expanding accessibility, which aligns perfectly with our history of providing the same access on Broadway.
Our goal is to create a more inclusive patron experience. We’re pleased to have teamed up with GalaPro in the development of this important technology which provides individual on-demand closed captions and audio description for live shows around the world.”
ABOUT GALAPRO: The GalaPro App makes the world of entertainment accessible and inclusive to everyone, at any venue, in any seat, anywhere in the world. GalaPro opens the curtains to a universal cultural experience by delivering automated multilingual subtitles, closed captioning, and audio description to the user’s own mobile device, without disrupting the surrounding audience. Owned by Broadway leader The Shubert Organization and exclusively distributed by Sound Associates Inc., GalaPro’s technology is designed to provide an all-access, unique, and non-disruptive experience for audience members in need of closed captioning or audio descriptions using any WiFi-enabled mobile device.
Focused on making Theatre more accessible since 1979, Sound Associates, an industry-leading professional audio and video integrator specializing in the performing arts, has developed products to aid patrons with hearing and vision loss. The implementation of these products in Broadway Theatres has garnered Sound Associates, Inc. a Special Tony Award from the American Theatre Wing and the Secretary’s Highest Recognition Award from the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
The GalaPro app is available in the Apple App Store or Google Play. For more information go to www.galapro.com and www.soundassociates.com.
ABOUT LW THEATRES: LW Theatres own and operate six of the most prestigious and desirable theatres in the world, including the iconic London Palladium and the stately Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Wholly owned by Andrew Lloyd Webber, LW Theatres play host to some of the world’s best musicals and plays, as well as a popular variety of concerts and comedy. The LW Theatres portfolio also includes Her Majesty’s Theatre, the Cambridge Theatre, the Gillian Lynne Theatre, and the Adelphi Theatre (owned in association with Nederlander International Limited). LW Theatres is the largest operator of musical theatre in London with 1 in 3 of all visits to a London musical being to a LW Theatres venue. All profits from LW Theatres are proudly reinvested into the theatres, with more than £100m put back into the industry since 2006. For more information www.lwtheatres.co.uk.
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