It's 2024; the Americans with Disabilities Act became law more than 30 years ago. Every venue should have this information on their web site and it should be easy to find. A venue's accessibility page should cover the following:
- Where wheelchair accessible entrances are
- Ideally, but I've never seen this, path of travel distance from regular and wheelchair accessible entrances to different seating areas. This is useful for ambulatory disabled people.
- Drop-off locations
- Elevator locations
- Locations of accessible toilets
- The types of accessible seating offered, which can include:
- Wheelchair spaces
- Companion space for patrons using wheelchairs
- Bariatric seats
- Seats without arms
- Seats where an armrest can be lifted
- Facilities and assistive devices for people who are deaf or have hearing impairments
- Facilities and assistive devices for people who are blind or have visual limitations
- Whether there are performances for neurodiverse people
- Whether there are performances for people bringing small children
The web site of the San Francisco Opera has a model page that is easy to find. It's linked from their general visitor information page, where the link uses the magic word "accessibility."
The web site the San Francisco Symphony is not so good. It has a very brief section called Patrons with Disabilities on the Visitor FAQs page. I have no idea why the word "accessibility" isn't used. Worse, this page is buried and difficult to find. Using the search box doesn't find it under "disabilities" or "accessibility." You navigate to it this way:
Your Visit -> SCROLL past the section for Upcoming Concerts -> Click View FAQs.
It's the second section and it doesn't say very much, like telling you which entrance to Davies is accessible.* The particular seats that a disabled person I know uses cannot be purchased on the web, so the page is a bit misleading; you have to call the box office to get purchase them (and they apparently can't be part of a subscription).
* I'll give away the secret: it's the entrance on Grove by the box office. The one on Van Ness near Hayes is up steps.
3 comments:
And the Van Ness entrance to Davies is usually closed these days anyway. I often walk up from Market, and on inclement days it was nice to be able to pop in on that entrance, until they closed it.
I think that I have gone out the Van Ness entrance a couple of times, but the last time I entered there was before the pandemic, I'm sure, maybe back a million years ago when you picked up press tickets at the press room rather than having them arrive in your SFS account....
Yes, you can still go out that way, and I occasionally do; but they've ceased stationing a ticket-taker there and have locked the door from outside.
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