Venue Description

Built in 1766 as a place where the people of Bristol could come together, Bristol Old Vic is the oldest continuously working theatre in the English speaking world. It was built as a symbol of the pride we have in our city and what it can achieve and remains a place of joy, discovery and adventure to this day. Our front of house has recently undergone a multi-million pound redevelopment. Our new building boasts a brand new Studio Theatre, relaxing and fully-accessible front of house space, with a bar and kitchen serving everything from tasty treats with a morning coffee to an evening meal, alongside a new interactive heritage offering – opening up the 250-year-old history of this unique building for everyone to discover and enjoy at their own pace. Our mission is to create pioneering twenty-first-century theatre in partnership with the people of our energetic city; inspired by the history and magical design of the most beautiful playhouse in the country. Come on in.

Accessibility

Our main entrance is at street level of King Street and fully wheelchair accessible with automatic doors to facilitate comfortable access. Our Foyer, 1766 Bar & Kitchen and Box Office are all fully wheelchair accessible. Our Foyer lift enables customers full access to all public areas of our building. Please note that our Foyer lift is currently under repair, so step-free access to all levels is provided by our back of house lift. Just chat to one of our friendly front of house staff and they will ensure you can get around our building comfortably. Tickets can be booked in person at the Box Office, by phone, by text, by email or online. Please visit our Booking Information page to find out more: https://bristololdvic.org.uk/booking-information. Contact our Box Office on 0117 987 7877 to register for online booking so you can access the discounts you may be entitled to, including free companion tickets when booking through our website. We have two main performance spaces at Bristol Old Vic – The Weston Studio and the Theatre: In the Theatre, there are two allocated wheelchair spaces in the Theatre in the Dress Circle, including one permanent fixed wheelchair platform with great views of the stage. The Weston Studio is a more flexible space so we can accommodate multiple wheelchair users, on both Floor and Balcony levels. You can book any of these in advance by phoning 0117 987 7877, letting us know of any other access requirements you may have, so we can ensure your visit is as enjoyable as possible. These are also bookable online if you have registered for online booking. In the Theatre, the Dress Circle is accessed from the Foyer or back of house via lift and there are accessible toilet facilities and step-free access to seats on the Dress Circle level. There is also access to the seating and dining area on the Foyer dais, perfect for interval drinks. Please note that only the Dress Circle in the Theatre has step-free access to seats. All other levels (Pit, Upper Circle and Gallery) have steps in their seating areas. See our Seating Plans for more information including step counts: https://bristololdvic.org.uk/booking-information/seating-plans.

Accessibility Guide

Accessibility Guide Link: https://bristololdvic.org.uk/access

Accessible Performances

We provide a range of Accessible performances including BSL Interpreted Shows, Audio Described Shows, Captioned Shows and Relaxed performances. Please see our website for full listings of our assisted performances: https://bristololdvic.org.uk/access/assisted-performances

Awards List

RIBA National Award RIBA South West 2019 Building of the Year Bristol Life Awards 2019 - Platinum Award Bristol Life Awards 2019 - Arts Award

Toilets

We have accessible toilet facilities on Levels -1, 0 and 1, accessible via the foyer and back of house lifts. Our toilets on Level -1 are signposted as gender-non-binary welcome. This is to show that customers who do not identify with a binary gender are welcome to use whichever washroom bearing this symbol that they prefer. Those who prefer to use gendered toilets can do so in the washrooms that bear gendered symbols only (on Level 1). We want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable using the toilet facilities at Bristol Old Vic. This is why we have signposted the washrooms as simply and clearly as possible. Our policy is to allow all customers to use whichever facility they wish, whilst asking that everyone respect each other, and behave appropriately around other users. Staff will only intervene in washrooms use if they are made aware of inappropriate behaviour, which will not be tolerated. You can download our full inclusive toilet policy here: https://bit.ly/2Lu4f7a.

Staff

Bristol Old Vic is part of the Bristol Access Venues network. This is a group of Bristol-based venues that promote excellence in accessibility in their venues and work to continually improve their current access provision, staff awareness and training. At Bristol Old Vic we also have an internal Access Forum of front-line staff from across the organisation. This forum plans training for the teams that welcome you into the building. Some recent workshops include: Dementia Friends, Autism Awareness, Agents for Change workshops, Mental Health Awareness and Introductions to BSL. Our Access Forum is in regular contact with audiences as they work Front of House and love having a chat about customers' experiences at our venue and what their requirements are. Our Box Office team is very accommodating and happy to answer any question you have regarding accessing our programme. For ticket enquires email: tickets@bristololdvic.org.uk. For any access questions specifically, big or small, feel free to email us on: access@bristololdvic.org.uk

Assistance dog facilities

Assistance dog exercise facilities

We welcome assistance dogs. Nearby to Bristol Old Vic is Queen's Square (3 minute walk), where assistance dogs can be exercised.

Other assistance dog facilities

We offer your assistance dog water when they visit. Please just ask any member of our front of house staff or 1766 Bar & Kitchen staff and they will be more than happy to help. If helpful and with your permission, we are happy to walk your assistance dog while you are enjoying the show!