Accessible productions at the National Theatre of Greece

At a glance

Working along with the National Theatre, the biggest stage in Greece, we have designed universally accessible productions for adults and children with visual and hearing impairments. We support equality and the right of all people to barrier-free access to performances and equitable participation in theatrical activities.

Offering equal rights of access to culture

2024-2025 theatre season

The National Theatre is staging 7 universally accessible performances:

2 productions of “The Birthday”, adapted from Georges Sari’s story and directed by Dimitris Agartzidis and Despina Anastasoglou, at the Youth Stage, REX Theatre
3 productions of Molière’s “The School of Wives”, translated by Chrysa Prokopaki, at the Marika Kotopouli stage, REX Theatre
2 productions of “Faust”, based on Goethe' s play of the same name, at the Main Stage of Ziller building (March 2025).

The accessibility services are provided by Atlas E.P.

2023-2024 theatre season

4 universally accessible productions were staged:

2 productions of “Pinocchio”, adapted from Carlo Collodi’s story and directed by Vassilis Mavrogeorgiou, at the Youth Stage, REX Theatre
2 productions of “The matchmaker”, written by Thornton Wilder and directed by Thomas Moschopoulos, at the Marika Kotopouli stage, REX Theatre

The accessibility services were designed and carried out by the cultural organisation liminal.

Meanwhile, aiming to raise public awareness, we created 1 video about the Pinocchio production and 1 video about The matchmaker production.

Turning our values into action

We give our fellow citizens with disabilities the chance to attend live theatrical performances. Through our actions, we cultivate the concept of inclusion and social integration in the Greek society.

For people with visual impairments, we offer:

Audio description (AD)
Transcription of production programmes in Braille
Tactile tours before the start of performances

For people with hearing impairments, we offer:

Greek subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing (SDH)
Simultaneous interpretation of performances in Greek Sign Language (GSL)

Additionally, the National Theatre's halls are accessible to people in wheelchairs and guide dogs are allowed.

Our initiative in numbers

What we have accomplished so far:

Universally accessible productions

9

Spectators with disabilities who attended

845

“Equal access is culture in itself.”
Rouli Christopoulou, Alpha Bank Head of Corporate Responsibility

Planning for the future

We envision barrier-free access to art for all. Our aim is to give to the more than 1 million of our fellow citizens with visual or hearing impairments the chance to attend performances and participate in theatrical activities.

We also aspire to promote even more the problems faced by people with disabilities, aiming to raise public awareness about inclusion. To this end, we are starting a new round of universally accessible productions.

Inclusion in performances according to the Observatory on Disability Issues

People with disabilities currently in Greece

1055000

Percentage of people with grave disability who have attended live performances

11.5 %