Armando Montano
South Coloradan
The Adams State College Theater Department’s newest onstage production of “Children of a Lesser God” gave the audience an opportunity to see what impact sound has on those who cannot hear. The entire production required the contribution of several individuals to create the final result. Dr. John Taylor, professor of theater and Director of the play, teamed up with Peggy Filer, Adams State American Sign Language instructor and deaf awareness consultant to work with the actors in the play, particularly the two leads (Brittany Chowning and David Trudeau), as well as the actors portraying characters who are hard of hearing (Jacob Sorling and Amanda Lovitt).
The actors took to learning Sign Language not only to be proficient in detailing their lines in the play, but also to make their characters believable. Filer noted the task was a huge project because becoming proficient in American Sign Language generally takes two years. Trudeau has been reported to have had only one month to learn sign language and his hard work impressed Filer. In point of fact, Filer also stated that the actors use the correct syntax and grammar when signing.
Filer admitted that he does not attend many events because there is seldom an ASL interpreter to communicate for the deaf. Both Filer and Taylor were very excited for the production and the reaction from the hearing impaired community. “The San Luis Valley deaf community is very excited for this event. It may never happen again.” Filer said. Taylor also took efforts to make the most of the production in the community. He arranged for the National Theater of the Deaf to visit Adams State to conduct workshops, an event usually occurring in big cities. Filer is grateful to the Adams State Associated Students and Faculty financial support for the endeavor. He said, “The National Theater of the Deaf coming is the encore. It is all in my language.”
“Children of a Lesser God,” a play by Mark Medoff, follows James Leeds, a Teacher for deaf students and the rocky romantic/professional relationship he shares with a former deaf student, Sarah Norman.
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