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NBC’s ‘The Wiz Live!’ to include vocal description as pioneering service for sight-impaired

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In this Nov. 12, 2015 photo released by NBC, the cast members, from left, David Alan Grier as The Cowardly Lion, Shanice Williams as Dorothy, Elijah Kelley as Scarecrow, Ne-Yo as Tinman rehearse in New York for the broadcast premiere of "The Wiz Live!" premiering Thursday, Dec. 3. (Will Hart/NBC via AP)

NEW YORK, N.Y. – When “The Wiz Live!” airs on NBC this Thursday, it will come alive for the blind with a voiced description of the broadcast’s sights and action integrated into its soundtrack.

NBC parent Comcast says this will be the first live entertainment program in U.S. history to be accessible in this way to those who are blind. The vocal description is a narration track interspersed between existing pauses in dialogue that describes the show’s visual elements such as facial expressions, settings, costumes and stage direction.

This enhanced broadcast of “The Wiz Live!” will be a pilot program available on local NBC stations where SAP (Second Audio Program) feeds are available. The service will be provided by Descriptive Video Works, which has provided more than 1,000 hours of live description for certain news and sports events.

“The Wiz Live!” premieres Thursday at 8 p.m. EST, with stars including Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige, David Alan Grier, Ne-Yo, Elijah Kelley, Uzo Aduba and Common, as well as Shanice Williams as the young heroine, Dorothy.

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