Signed performance at Dembe Theatre to benefit hearing dog charity

The evening will also support a worthy cause as one of the show’s sponsors, has offered to donate 10% of opening night ticket sales to Princes Risborough-based charity, Hearing Dogs for Deaf People.

The Drowsy Chaperone is a musical comedy set in the 1920’s that follows the impending wedding of an oil tycoon hopelessly in love with a Broadway starlet who is willing to give up her career for marriage.

The audience is greeted in the present day by the narrator, ‘Man In Chair’ who, feeling a little blue, cheers himself up by playing his favourite recording of fictional 1928 musical, The Drowsy Chaperone.

When the music begins, the audience is catapulted from Man in Chair’s humdrum kitchen into a Broadway show, dripping with 1920s glamour, Vaudevillian comedy and energised by Charleston-esque dances.

The idea for the signed performance came from Lucy Ellis, the show’s producer and choreographer, and owner of one of the show’s sponsors, Lulu’s Pet Pantry.

Lucy said: “The show is a visual treat, with sparkling costumes, high-octane dances and slapstick comedy, and its extensive narration makes it especially well-suited to BSL interpretation. We wanted to make sure members of the deaf and hard-of-hearing community could enjoy the show just as much as the hearing audience.”

Gill Yeates, Head of Community Fundraising for Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, said: “We are so grateful to Lucy and the team at Dembe Theatre for their generous offer. Every ticket sold brings us closer to training another amazing hearing dog - and creating more life-changing partnerships. We would like to wish the theatre company the very best of luck for their opening night.”

To ensure part of their ticket purchase benefits Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, audience members can book their ticket for the 6 May performance through the Dembe Theatre website at www.dembetheatre.org/whatson/the-drowsy-chaperone and quote promo code BSL25 at the checkout.