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Advocacy

As well as her singing work, Joanne is an industry leader in disability-led arts. She is a speaker and thought leader on access-centred artistry, and demonstrates the power of this work through her opera company, formidAbility.​​​​

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Joanne's visual impairment has never curbed her own ambitions and vision as an opera singer and producer, and she has established herself at the forefront of accessible opera. Her experience of presenting disabled-led opera on established main stages, and building new and engaged opera audiences amongst the Deaf and disabled community, give her a unique and privileged perspective on accessibility in the classical music, and wider arts, sector.

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formidAbility recently toured Song in Sign, a groundbreaking production combining opera and art song with BSL acting. The show toured to the main stages of Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Royal Northern College of Music and Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Although these are traditional settings for opera, there was nothing traditional about the work itself, and part of the advocacy work for the project was to challenge the industry-wide assumption that disabled-led work is auxiliary to projects, and to champion the right for disabled-led work to appear on main stages.

 

Song in Sign put access at the heart of the creative process and succeeded in engaging brand new Deaf and disabled audiences in four UK cities, as well as enchanting existing opera audiences with the programme combining established repertoire with a newly commissioned opera by Rylan Gleave.​​

Headshot of Joanne Roughton-Arnold, soprano and disability advocate, in a bright pink top and pendant necklace. She is smiling gregariously, with her red hair framing her face.

Joanne is happy to respond to particular briefs, and frequently speaks on the following topics:

 

  • Direct experience of engaging the Deaf and disabled communities in opera performance 

  • How can we include more people on and off the stage?

  • What role do venues play in diversity and access in opera? And what can venues do to make their shows more inclusive?

  • Fundraising for disability-led arts projects

  • Personal experience as a professional opera singer with a visual impairment

  • Personal experience of training and early career as an opera singer and as a violinist 

  • Managing a dual career as an opera singer and a CEO

  • Managing a six-figure Arts Council England funded project

  • Opera auditions

  • Working with British Sign Language

  • Opera company management​

Joanne has recently been on panels for Arts Council England, the Royal Opera House Engender Network, Opera North, the League of American Orchestras, Northern Opera Group and the Nystagmus Network. She is a powerful communicator and vibrant spokesperson for the disability community

 

Information and a video of the show can be found here: https://www.formidability.org/2022-song-in-sign

 

General information on formidAbility and Joanne's role can be found here: https://www.formidability.org/

 

Joanne conducted a distinguished provocation with Engender Network - you can read her compelling blog post based on the provocation here.

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