Matilda The Musical – Inclusive Family Days

On Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 May 2025, in collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company, we hosted two special Inclusive Family Days around Matilda The Musical at the Cambridge Theatre!

Created for families with bind / visually impaired and D/deaf / hard of hearing young people or those with special educational needs, each day was designed to provide an inclusive and empowering introduction to live theatre.

Thanks to our generous funders, we were able to offer 19 families a fully subsidised day of theatre experiences for just £10 per person. This included an interactive performance workshop, a touch tour on the Matilda stage, and tickets to the Audio Described / Captioned performances in the afternoon.

Facilitated by Amber Ogunsaya-William and supported by Princess Bestman and Ella McGran, the workshops provided a welcoming and creative environment, helping young people understand the show more deeply and express themselves through movement and storytelling.

A Day Full of Firsts

This event marked a series of ‘firsts’ for many of the families involved. One family had never been to the theatre before, while two more only attend once a year. Every young person in attendance has an additional need, and many had never experienced a workshop or touch tour like this before. Each family brought at least one child, with one family attending with four children – showing how impactful these experiences can be when made accessible to the whole family.

Here’s what we achieved:

• 70 tickets were made available to families from 12 different boroughs, including Barnet, Camden, Gravesend, Greenwich, Haringey, Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark, Teignbridge, Wealden, City of Westminster, and Windsor and Maidenhead.

• 100% of families felt the subsidised tickets enabled them to attend.

• 100% of families said the workshop and touch tour enhanced their understanding and enjoyment of the production.

• 90% of families found the experience educational.

• 70% said that meeting others with similar lived experiences was a key highlight.

• 100% described the day as a great day out for the whole family.

Here’s just a selection of feedback from the families…

“This experience was both sensational and exceptional. Sensational because other and all senses were encouraged in one space.” 

“After we got home, in her safe space, (Young person) thanked me for a lovely day. For a selective mute with social and emotional needs, this was a heart-warming response to the day.”  

“(Young person) said on the way home that’s the first time she’s ever understood a show as the touch tour explained what she was touching and what it was used for. Even TV doesn’t make sense. It’s something I’d never really thought of for her as she doesn’t say much. She loved the workshop and in new environments is normally one to stand back but Amber was great at getting everyone involved.” 

“It was a wonderful opportunity to be able to go up onto the stage and handle the props and ask questions before, then seeing these in use in the show; and it has inspired our child to think about the origins of plays and to begin writing his own! We met with one of the families we already knew afterwards.“

Watch our video to get a feel for the day and hear from the young people and parents / carers themselves!

We would like to thank the Royal Shakespeare Company, AKA, Cambridge Theatre, Seven Dials Playhouse and Dragon Hall, as well as our funders The Victoria Wood Foundation and London Freemasons’ Charity for making this weekend possible!

Accessible. Inclusive. Joyful.

With your support, we’re able to create meaningful, tailored theatre experiences for families who might otherwise miss out. Help us continue this work – donate today or get in touch through the form below to support similar Inclusive Theatre Day models in a more targeted way.

Video: www.chaaustaoglu.com