Welcome to Thebes By Moira Buffini

Blindness

I went to the Blind School in January with my Grandma, who is also visually impaired. I went to try get a better understanding of what life is like to be Blind and the challenges. The social worker told me the different types of Blindness: cataracts (47.9%), glaucoma (12.3%), age-related macular degeneration (8.7%), corneal opacity (5.1%), and diabetic retinopathy (4.8%), childhood blindness (3.9%), trachoma (3.6%) onchocerciasis (0.8%)

Illustration 1: A blind stick, with She had a few glasses that simulated the different types of Blindness, rotation ball narrow vision Glaucoma, central vision for Macular degeneration, and one at the end which was cloudy for childhood blindness, which Tiresias has. I always thought that blind people would see darkness, actually it is the opposite, they can see light, and can tell if they walk into a dark room or a bright room, they can sense the subtle changes of light coming from a door or window. They know when it is night and day. The stick used by blind people, is done In kind of a circular motion to sweep and search for anything they could fall over, this though doesn't protect them from things above or hanging like branches or signs for example. Thats where guide dogs come in, because they move the Blind person out of harms way. I met several Blind people, but I met Andrew who had been blind from birth, and was exceptionally independent. I looked at him in movement

terms and he was indirect, sustained, light and unbound. He was very sensual, and used his hearing, and particulary touch in place of his eyes. - I think the best thing to do in rehearsals is to be blindfolded for as much as possible, to experience what it is like

Illustration 3: A picture of me leading Andrew

Illustration 2: An image of Andrew and I showing his blind stick

Illustration 4: Another photo of me leading Andrew in the communal hall

Illustration 5: Roger was partially blind with Glaucoma, still retained some of his central vision