There is much excitement in Laois as the nationally renowned Sightless Cinema returns to Portlaoise next month.

Sightless Cinema is a collaborative arts project for people with sight loss to devise and produce audio theatre under the direction of theatre-maker Ciarán Taylor. 

Sightless Cinema returns to Dunamaise Arts Centre as part of its national tour! Dog’s Life offers audiences a highly entertaining night of thrillers, comedies, horrors and true stories in surround-sound audio - a feast for the imagination because all the pictures are in your head, with optional blindfolds provided to heighten audience members experience! 

Pictured: Sightless Cinema Network Group, cast from Laois, Meath and South Dublin celebrating after their final 2024 show (Photo Felipe Jóia)

Brand new short plays, presented as a mix of recorded and live audio dramas, are performed on stage by 22 members of the Sightless Cinema Network from three counties.

In its eleventh successful year, Sightless Cinema is a collaborative arts project for people with sight loss who devise, produce and present audio theatre. Director Ciarán Taylor leads weekly workshops, co- creating new audio dramas together with the visually impaired and blind performers from all over Laois, joined on stage by fellow creators from Meath and South Dublin.

Stories include Open Fire, a comedy set during an electricity black-out after a storm; The Devil’s Sliotar, a fun folk-horror about a village desperate to lift a terrible curse; Look Who’s Barking about a litter of guide dog pups taking their final test course, and Dye Another Day where a woman going on a first date has a very bad hair day!

“We’ve set ourselves the challenge of collaborating across the Leinster region. We hope to establish a model for arts participation for people with disabilities, to build demand for more opportunities to experience the arts, and to pave the way for a national network of Sightless Cinemas," said the director.

Some participants begin with no stage experience whatsoever. Through weekly creative workshops, they develop ideas, stories and characters, culminating in a multi-venue tour of the highly entertaining productions they create together.

It was first established in 2014 in Dún Laoghaire and has since expanded, offering opportunities for blind and visually impaired people to get involved in the arts locally, as well as work with other groups in Leinster.

Sightless Cinema will take to the stage in the Dunamaise Arts Centre on November 4, 2025. Tickets available at the box office, or Dunamaise.ie.

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