Sound Installation Blindness Sets April Off-Broadway Opening as Theatres Slowly Begin to Open Their

Off-Broadway’s Daryl Roth Theatre will welcome audiences back to its space this spring for the socially distanced sound and light experience Blindness. The open-ended engagement will begin April 2, marking one of the first ticketed performing arts events to open in New York City since the coronavirus shutdown.

Inspired by José Saramago’s dystopian novel and adapted by Simon Stephens, the piece charts perhaps familiar territory—a sudden global pandemic—that leaves its victims without sight. Audiences experience the story, as narrated by Olivier winner Juliet Stevenson, through binaural headphone technology while immersed in an atmospheric design.

After debuting at London’s Donmar Warehouse in August last year, producer Daryl Roth announced she would bring the show to her namesake venue pending the approval of public health protocols. The opening is made possible as part of New York’s “Flex Venues” program, which allows spaces that can accommodate socially distanced configurations to resume performances beginning April 2. Per state regulations, audience capacity is limited to either 33 percent capacity or up to 100 people.

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