La valutazione dell’esperienza del pubblico. Accessibilità e studi di ricezione al Macerata Opera Festival


Abstract


This essay discusses an audience reception study carried out in the framework of media accessibility in order to evaluate the experience of blind/partially sighted patrons and their (sighted) accompanying persons in the context of Macerata Opera Festival (MOF), 2018 edition. Adopting a qualitative analytical approach, in which the main interest is on individuals (i.e. the samples under investigation), and relying on post-hoc self-report questionnaires, three interdependent variables were measured: (1) comprehension and recall, (2) cognitive load, and (3) psychological immersion. This analytical approach was then combined with a descriptive approach including the collection of attitudinal data for the evaluation of appreciation and preferences. Results reveal that there was no substantial divergence in the levels of the variables under investigation between the two samples: blind/partially sighted and sighted (accompanying) patrons. Additionally, audio description and tactile tours did not provoke cognitive overloading and they even increased psychological immersion. Furthermore, it is possible to find a correspondence between the high levels of appreciation and preferences and the results related to comprehension and recall, cognitive load, and psychological immersion. This confirms the effectiveness of audio descriptions and tactile tours in enhancing audience’s experience and increasing blind/partially sighted users’ empowerment.

DOI Code: 10.1285/i22390359v43p33

Keywords: accessibility; reception studies; Macerata Opera Festival; audio description; tactile tours

References


ADLAB PRO 2017, Audio Description Professional – Profile Definition. https://www.adlabpro.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/IO2-REPORT-Final.pdf (30.10.2020).

Biltereyst D. e Meers P. 2018, Film, Cinema and Reception Studies : Revisiting Research on Audience’s Filmic and Cinematic Experiences, in Di Giovanni E. e Gambier Y. (a cura di), Reception Studies and Audiovisual Translation, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, pp. 21-41.

Christie I. 2012, Audiences. Defining and Researching Screen Entertainment Reception, Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam.

Di Giovanni E. 2014, Visual and Narrative Priorities of the Blind and Non-Blind: Eye tracking and Audio Description, in “Perspectives: Studies in Translatology” 22 [1], pp. 136-153.

Di Giovanni E. 2018a, Audio description for Live Performances and Audience Participation, in “The Journal of Specialised Translation” 29, pp. 189-211. https://jostrans.org/issue29/art_digiovanni.pdf (30.10.2020).

Di Giovanni E. 2018b, Dubbing, Perception and Reception, in Di Giovanni E. e Gambier Y. (a cura di), Reception Studies in Audiovisual Translation, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, pp. 159-178.

Di Giovanni E. e Gambier Y. 2018, Reception Studies and Audiovisual Translation, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.

Di Giovanni E. 2020, La traduzione audiovisiva e i suoi pubblici. Studi di ricezione, Paolo Loffredo Editore, Napoli.

European Commission 2010, European Disability Strategy 2010-2020: A Renewed Commitment to a Barrier-Free Europe. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2010:0636:FIN:en:PDF (30.10.2020).

Fresno N. 2014, Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? The Role of Memory in Audio Description, in “Across Languages and Cultures” 15 [1], pp. 111-129.

Fresno N. 2017, Approaching Engagement in Audio Description, in “Rivista internazionale di tecnica della traduzione” 19, pp. 13-32.

Fryer L., Pring L. e Freeman J. 2013, Audio Drama and The Imagination. The Influence of Sound Effects on Presence in People with and without Sight, in “Journal of Media Psychology” 25 [2], pp. 65-71.

Holland A. 2009, Audio Description in the Theatre and the Visual Arts: Images into Words, in Díaz Cintas J. e Anderman G. (a cura di), Audiovisual Translation. Language Transfer on Screen, Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstroke, pp. 170-185.

Jakobson R. 1959, On Linguistic Aspects of Translation, in Brower R.A. (a cura di), On Translation, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, pp. 232-239.

Jensen K. B. 2012, Lost, Found, and Made: Qualitative Data in the Study of Three-Step Flows of Communication, in Volkmer I. (a cura di), The Handbook of Global Media Research, Wiley-Blackwell, Hoboken, pp. 435-450.

Kruger J.-L. e Doherty S. 2018, Triangulation of Online and Offline Measures of Processing and Reception in AVT, in Di Giovanni E. e Gambier Y. (a cura di), Reception Studies in Audiovisual Translation, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia, pp. 91-109.

Orero P., Doherty S., Kruger J.-L., Matamala A., Pedersen J., Perego E., Romero-Fresco P., Rovira-Esteva S., Soler-Vilageliu O. e Szarkowska A. 2018, Conducting Experimental Research in Audiovisual Translation (AVT): A Position Paper, in “The Journal of Specialised Translation” 30, pp. 105-126.

Pérez-González L. 2014, Audiovisual Translation. Theories, Methods and Issues, Routledge, Londra/New York.

Remael A., Reviers N. e Vandekerckhove R. 2018, From Translation Studies and Audiovisual Translation to Media Accessibility: Some Research Trends, in “Target” 28 [2], pp. 248-260.

Ryhl C. 2009, Architecture for Senses, in Vavik T. (a cura di), Inclusive Buildings, Products & Services: Challenges in Universal Design, Tapir Academic Press, Trondheim, pp. 104- 27.

Sen A. K. 1993, Capability and Well-being, in Nussbaum M.C. e Sen A.K. (a cura di), The Quality of Life, Clarendon Press, Oxford.

Staiger J. 2005, Media Reception Studies, New York University Press, New York/Londra.

Tor-Carroggio I. e Orero P. 2019, User Profiling in Audio Description Reception Studies: Questionnaires for All, in “inTRAlinea”. http://www.intralinea.org/specials/article/2410 (30.10.2020).

United Nations 2006, United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. http://www.un.org/disabilities/documents/convention/convention_accessible_pdf.pdf (30.10.2020).

Wallerstein N. 1992, Powerlessness, Empowerment, and Health: Implications for Health Promotion Programs, in “American Journal of Health Promotion” 6 [3], pp. 197-205.

White T. L. e McBurney D. 2013, Research Methods, Cengage Learning, Belmont.

Wilken N. e Kruger J.-L. 2016, Putting the Audience in the Picture: Mise-en-shot and Psychological Immersion in Audio Described Film, in “Across Languages and Cultures” 17 [2], pp. 253-271.


Full Text: pdf

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribuzione - Non commerciale - Non opere derivate 3.0 Italia License.