James and Jamie have worked hard to make themselves as visible as possible while they shadow the cast of Bells Are Ringing. You could sit almost anywhere, and still seem them most of the time.

But, there is a ‘sweet spot‘ for watching the interpreters for Bells Are Ringing at the Eisenhower Performing Arts Center. The set is magnificent! Notice the telephone cut-out that frames the stage – amazing! [ See THIS BLOG for a vBlog about the set design. ] One importing thing: If you sit too far to the left or right, the telephone cut-out might block your view of the interpreters.
The set is designed brilliantly to allow a nice view of the stage through the bottom part of the telephone cut-out. Jamie and James have planned all of their movements to work within the most open part of the stage. But, just to be sure, it is a good idea for you to select seating that is toward the center of the auditorium. Sit close enough so that you will be able to read ASL clearly. At rehearsals we tested a bunch of seats, and we recommend the seats shaded in the photo above.
You don’t have to sit in the front row – in fact, we think that’s too close! A few rows back is close enough – some people like to sit a bit farther back, in order to see a ‘wide shot’ of the stage.
Please – let’s leave some of ‘the prime seats’ for members of the Deaf community. We love interpreting students – you know we do – but, you can hear the show. There isn’t a bad seat in the house at Eisenhower. Get there early enough to get a good seat – but leave some great seats for Deaf folks, please.
See you all at the show!
Bells Are Ringing
PLEASE: Buy your tickets ahead of time. There WILL be long lines to buy tickets ‘at the door.’
Saturday, February 12, 2011
TIcket Information and Performance Details on TerpTheatre’s Website

Danny McDougall, PhD, CSC — “Dr. Danny” — owns and manages TerpTheatre. Since 1986, he has interpreted in hundreds of plays, musicals and other performances on stage – most in the shadowed style. He teaches and lectures on the theory and practice of theatre interpreting. Danny is the chair of Sign Language Studies at Madonna University, and holds a PhD in Translation and Interpretation from Heriot-Watt University – where his dissertation explored the relationship between space and meaning during interpreted theatre performances.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.