Stir Q&A: In Deafy, Chris Dodd celebrates Deaf culture
The Edmonton-based Deaf artist smashes stereotypes in the tragicomedy about belonging, complete with ASL, surtitles, and spoken word
Chris Dodd, Deafy. Photo by Nanc Price
Pi Theatre presents Deafy as part of its Pi Provocateurs Series in a sold-out run from November 24 to 26 at VIFF Studio Theatre
CHRIS DODD IS an Edmonton-based Deaf playwright, actor, accessibility advocate, and Governor General Innovation Award finalist. His new play, Deafy, which he is bringing to Vancouver via Pi Theatre’s Pi Provocateurs Series, has toured Ontario, been featured in the Citadel Theatre’s Highwire Series, and is part of the Playwrights Canada Press anthology Interdependent Magic: Disability Performance in Canada.
In Deafy, Dodd plays a Deaf public speaker named Nathan Jesper who arrives at a gig desperately late. Once he launches into his speech, he finds out that things are not at all what they seem.
Directed by Ashley White, the tragicomedy combines ASL, surtitles, and spoken word—making it accessible to Deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences—and draws on humour, Deaf culture, and personal stories in its look at belonging, marginalization, and more.
The founder and artistic director of SOUND OFF, Canada’s national festival devoted to Deaf performance, Dodd won the 2019 Guy Laliberté Prize for innovation and creative leadership from the Canada Council for the Arts and has a degree from the University of Alberta’s Drama program. He has a starring role in Finality of Dusk, which will have its Canadian premiere at the Whistler Film Festival on November 30.
Stir connected with Dodd to learn more about the artist and his latest piece.
How did performance and theatre enter your life? What drew you to the arts?
I started with theatre very early on. I was sent to a Waldorf school for elementary, as my mother thought the specialized focus would benefit me as a child with hearing loss. The Waldorf program focuses on art, mythology, music, and languages, and it provided me with a creative foundation that I still draw upon today. While I did some theatre when I was there, it wasn't until I got to high school that I really had a chance to shine. I had a wonderful drama teacher and he really encouraged me to explore theatre as a possible career. I've always enjoyed being in the spotlight and I've always been something of a class clown.
Tell us the backstory of Deafy. What compelled you to write it?
I previously co-wrote another solo show, Silent Words, with my hearing director, Ashley Wright. During the later runs of the show, we added surtitles to it to ensure the audience could understand me. I always knew I needed to write a second show, one that went even further with discussing the specific issues that challenge Deaf people, as well as making use of surtitles in a unique and fun way. Deafy really gets down to the core experience of what it is like to be Deaf, as told through the both hilarious and heartfelt stories of the show’s Deaf protagonist, Nathan Jesper.
I started writing it in 2017 with the support of Canadian playwright Vern Thiessen and it had its first showing at the SummerWorks Performance Festival in Toronto in 2019. After a pause for COVID, the show started touring and we’ve had a chance to really refine it and fine-tune it.
There are undoubtedly countless misconceptions that people with hearing have about Deaf people. What are some you’d like to quash? How do you deal with what must be incredibly frustrating assumptions other humans make about Deaf people? It must be especially challenging given that deafness is an invisible disability. How does this inform your work?
I consider deafness as part of my identity and I am very comfortable with that. However, many people tend to forget the human side of Deaf people. We’re really just like everyone else, except for the fact we cannot hear. The media has traditionally portrayed Deaf people in the past as isolated, dependent, and even disabled but in reality, especially for those who belong to the Deaf community, we have a strong linguistic community and strong cultural traditions.
What I love about being a performer is being able to challenge misconceptions and being able to showcase who I am, through the use of my language and through the use of my stories. The goal of Deafy, as with much of my work, is to entertain as well as have audiences come away with a new appreciation of the experience of being Deaf.
What makes theatre an effective means for you to share ideas, stories, and messages about being Deaf?
Being a Deaf artist who performs publicly, for both Deaf and hearing audiences, theatre gives me a platform and I always feel honoured to be able to get up on stage and share my experiences. Deaf people are very visual, expressive and large with their emotions. And ASL, as a three-dimensional language, translates perfectly to the stage.
Chris Dodd, Deafy. Photo by Nanc Price
How would you describe Deaf culture and how does it seep into the production?
Deaf culture is basically a celebration of deafness. It is about viewing yourself not as having lost something but gained something via the use of shared language and common history and culture.
Deafy is very much about Deaf culture but is presented in a funny and accessible way. The main character, Nathan, is a public speaker who one day finds himself within bizarre circumstances and feels compelled to break away from his usual script and instead tell the audience various stories from his life. His stories revolve around challenges with interacting with hearing people and a world that is designed for them, as well as navigating the challenges of his community. One example is when Nathan tells the story of learning how to drive. Deaf people are still not allowed to have interpreters with them when they take their driver’s test. During my own test, I had to struggle to communicate with the instructor through gestures and written communication, which is a lot when you are already taking a stressful test. The stories that the play is built around come from aspects of my own life, as well as the lives of Deaf friends.
Are things improving for Deaf people in terms of accessibility, acceptance, and identity in general and in the theatre world in particular? What work still needs to happen to make things better?
I would certainly say that Deaf artists are on the rise, thanks to an increasing focus on diversity and inclusion within the arts. All the Deaf artists I know across the country are very busy and engaged these days, which also includes some collaborations with hearing artists and mainstream theatre organizations. This also has resulted in more access for hard of hearing and Deaf audiences. However, in spite of this progress, there are still quite a few theatre organizations in Canada who stick to their set ways of doing things and still don't make concessions for involving Deaf or disabled artists or audiences. There has been much progress but we still have so much further to go.
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