To the editor:

I have been an avid Kansas University theatergoer and Friends of the Theatre member for many years. I have a moderate to severe bilateral hearing loss, and this has compromised my theater-going experience considerably, to say the least.

KU theater is so creative, innovative and enjoyable that I could not just stop attending. To compensate for not hearing more than a few words during the performance, I would read the script of a play before seeing the play and sit as close to the front as I could to use visual and facial cues as much as possible. I had tried the hearing assist that was available in the past, and it was of no help.

At Saturday evening’s performance of “Something’s Afoot” I tried the new Sennheiser hearing assistance equipment purchased with proceeds from the last FROTH fundraiser. It can be used to enhance hearing without or with hearing aids, which I use. It was with surprise and joy that I discovered that I could hear sentences, I could hear the dialogue and even the words in the songs. The sound was clear, and I could control the volume.

I am grateful to KU theater for their fantastic performances, FROTH for taking on this project, Sennheiser for their expertise and to Linda Hope, manager of audience services at KU, for her kind concern and help.

Vicki Douglas,

Lawrence