For those who are partially sighted, an audio described performance of an opera can open up a world of detail and insight, as Vidar Hjardeng discovered. Vidar attended an audio described performance of Welsh National Opera's Don Giovanni and a preceding touch tour at Birmingham Hippodrome this autumn.

Here, Vidar relates what you can expect from a night at an audio described opera:

"Having had the welcome opportunity to listen to, and digest, the pre-show notes on CD (giving a synopsis of the plot, and details of the characters, costumes and backdrop), it was good to be taken on stage to get a closer look at the set during the ever helpful touch tour.

We were shown the setting for the start of the opera – very high walls with the focal point being massive double doors. These doors were based on the monumental sculpture by the French sculptor, Auguste Rodin, entitled, The Gates of Hell... We were also told about another frieze of figures running across the top of the doors, containing the seated figure of a naked man with bowed head, possibly representing Adam contemplating Man’s destruction brought about by his own original sin.

We were encouraged to follow this pattern along the sidewalls which ended in rough lumps of stone, from which emerged the half carved figures of Rodin’s The Thinker on the left hand side, and on the right, The Kiss. The latter depicting the naked figures of a man and a woman, entwined in a passionate embrace - our describers said that they seemed to be almost growing out of the rock on which they were seated."

As Victor describes, the touch tour element of an audio described performance allows audience members to get up close to the set, feeling the textures and structures which create an opera set. Audience members also received a CD which familiarised the opera's synopsis and characters before the performance. During the opera itself, WNO's trained audio describers relate the action onstage in thrilling detail.

If you are interested in attending an audio described opera, our next described performance will be at Wales Millennium Centre on February 29 2012, for La traviata. Please call 029 2063 5031 for further details.