ADA Enhancements
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Cinerama's rear-captioning, wheelchair and companion seating.
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The balcony's wheelchair access floor plan.
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Seattle's renovated Cinerama Theatre sets a national benchmark among movie houses for making the motion picture experience accessible to all members of the disabled community. A mix of pioneering technologies and careful design features ensures that Cinerama far exceeds Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations for patrons and employees alike.
Highlights:
Rear Window Captioning (RWC)
Cinerama will be the second theater in Washington to offer innovative RWC access to patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing. With RWC, patrons use a small, transparent panel attached to their seats to reflect movie captions displayed in the rear of the theatre. These reflective panels create the illusion that captions are "superimposed" on the movie screen, providing a rich and unobstructed viewing experience. Cinerama patrons may obtain RWC devices from the theater at no charge, or purchase their own devices at the Cinerama merchandise kiosk.
Assistive Listening Devices
Patrons who are hard of hearing can utilize the Cinerama's state-of-the-art assistive listening devices, also available at no cost. These headsets, which can be used in all of the theater's 808 seats, amplify the movie's soundtrack using FM transmissions.
Audio Narration Devices
Headsets that narrate the on-screen action are available at no charge for patrons who are blind or partially sighted. The narration piped in through these specialized devices is extraordinarily descriptive, and when combined with the movie's soundtrack, creates a memorable entertainment experience for blind patrons.
Wheelchair Access
Cinerama also offers an abundance of features designed for patrons who use wheelchairs. The original lobby was lowered two feet, and now provides complete access into the theater. The house has accessible ticket and refreshment counters, and an elevator leading to the designated wheelchair seating. The main projector room is accessible for employees who use wheelchairs, and the house itself features nine wheelchair accessible seats and nine companion seats, conveniently located near the elevator.
Other Accessibility Features
• Compliant exterior and interior directional signage
• Accessible ticket booth (for both patrons and employees)
• Compliant interior handrails, and electric door opener
• Accessible concession stand (for both patrons and employees)
• Accessible male/female bathrooms, and an accessible family bathroom
• Accessible water fountains
• Accessible public and in-house telephones equipped with TDDs/TTYs
• Removable wide seats for obese patrons
• Accessible employee locker room
