The current administration is trying to wipe everything that even hints a diversity; but organizations like the Lincoln Center are keeping diversity alive with the Big Umbrella Festival.
Chela De Ferrari has rewritten the Shakespearian classic “Hamlet” starring eight actors with Down Syndrome. Each of the actors plays the Danish Prince at various points in the play.
De Ferrari is the founder and director of Teatro la Plaza – a Peruvian theater company.
Speaking on her choice of “Hamlet”, De Ferrari said, “it’s an approach that would give a new meaning to ‘to be or not to be’—I thought it was important to put a text of great value, like Hamlet, in the hands of a group to whom society doesn’t give value. In this cast’s hands, it’s an apparent contradiction that turns out is really not.”
De Ferrari spent months researching and interviewing to learn more about her actors, she noted, “I had long interviews with the actors to collect anecdotes that could relate to Hamlet as well as other characters and specific scenes in the play. I wrote (the adaptation) based on those ideas, and after awhile we found that we were very comfortable with one another—they even laughed at my jokes! We trusted each other, and it was very profound to see these performers become empowered and turn into real actors and actresses.”
She says, “there’s a truth and beauty in how they deliver the text. When we did the casting, we wanted to show the diversity in the performances, to show that professional actors aren’t the only way to connect to audiences. We’ve worked on this play for six years, we’ve traveled together and all of us are grateful for this experience.”
This summer, Deaf Broadway will perform a bi-lingual “Waitress” in Damrosch Park on July 23.
All of the actors are deaf and will perform the musical in ASL – American Sign Language – backed with a pre-recorded audio track.
Sandra Mae Frank is directing the production with the cast announcements coming.