Opinion

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Katie Samson, a white woman, is outdoors with a group of about 6 smiling people. She uses a wheelchair & wears a blue hat — Katie Samson (center) at the 2021 Philadelphia Flower Show for Art-Reach's first in-person Encore program since the pandemic, with audio describer Nicole Sardella, Art-Reach colleagues, and flower/plant lovers from the blind/low-vision community. Photo by Ashley Smith/Wide Eyed Studios.

Witnessing the Impact: What will post-pandemic life be like for disabled people?

A world not built for me—until now?

BSR is partnering with the Witnessing the Impact of COVID-19 in Disabled People’s Lives archive project. Writer, educator, and disability self-advocate Katie Samson asks whether we’ll keep considering accessibility when the pandemic wanes.

Katie Samson

Jul 20, 2021 Essays 6 minute read

The Walnut Street Theatre today. It has a gray exterior with columns and large windows. American flags fly on poles in front — A venue founded in 1808, rebuilt in 1970 to look like it did in 1828. (Photo by Alaina Johns.)

As artists continue to rally against the Walnut, it’s time to ask: who is “America’s Oldest Theatre”?

Staging history

Most coverage of protests against the Walnut Street Theatre ignores a key fact: the building may be historic, but the theater company there started in the 1980s. Alaina Johns thinks that matters.

Alaina Johns

Jul 13, 2021 Editorials 6 minute read