Jasper Williams: Being part of an inclusive dance project with professional deaf dancer Chris Fonseca (BSL)

Before this dance project, I had met Chris Fonseca twice in Newcastle. The first was on my birthday a few years ago, and in typical Deaf culture, we had a long chat. After I explained that I had recently started to re-enter the dance world following a 10-year hiatus from accessibility issues, Chris took the time to give me some tips on how to make things easier as a profoundly Deaf dancer.

Chris made me feel completely at ease and this interaction gave me the confidence to enquire at my local dance group – made up of all wheelchair users, taught by Kate Stanforth.

It seemed fitting and more meaningful that two years on that I would be one of six community cast performers chosen locally to contribute to a project on communication, with Chris Fonseca (alongside Ashling McCann) being the professional dancer(s) involved.

Although I have been involved with other dance projects, the day before, I felt unexpectedly nervous. It would be my first time in a dance rehearsal where I was not the only Deaf signer. As most of my dancing is now predominantly with Hearing wheelchair users, I was feeling anxious about what I would be expected to do. Would adapting moves be challenging? Would I be asked to perform in a dance style I was unfamiliar with?

The project was delivered by Surface Area Dance Theatre’s (SADT) Nicole Vivien Watson and produced by Moving Art Management. The work was inspired by a 20-year archive of written notes and conversations from Deaf writer Louise Stern’s past.

The performers included a 6-person local community cast made up of myself, Ruth Brickland, Sadaf Chezari, David Klotz, Paul Miller, and Anna Spencer – we were a mix of Deaf and Hearing people with different experiences of movement, performance, and dance, all bringing something different.

We also worked with two professional dancers: Chris Fonseca – a London-based Deaf dancer – and Ashling McCann – a Newcastle-based Hearing dancer. With us, we had 3 BSL/English interpreters throughout the week including the 3 performances in Durham, Newcastle and Alnwick.

The project was a dynamic week of creative activities where we focused on discussing, interpreting and portraying forms of communication. We looked at how Deaf people interact with Hearing people and bridge the gap of communication barriers. We noted in particular how many Deaf people rely on pen/paper to reduce this divide between the two (hearing and deaf) worlds.

A pivotal exercise that would become the start of each day was a game called Pass The Energy. We were positioned in a circle and needed to ‘pass’ the energy clockwise by sliding one hand over the other toward the person next to us as fast as we could while still retaining accuracy.

Once we had accomplished this, other variations were added, including going anti-clockwise, the ability to change and choose direction, and across the circle to anyone. Although really fun, it was also great for thinking about eye contact and visual cues, which are imperative for deaf people and when part of a movement piece.

After these activities, we reviewed the notes from Deaf writer Louise’s past 20 years of communication. I chose a passage which was about encouraging two friends who were having relationship difficulties. We then went onto think: how can we depict communication in movement?

We created a movement piece around these notes, thinking about the emotions and how we might interpret that writing into dance and movement. This could be with any style, any part of the body or expression.

We then performed our pieces to the group, and it was amazing to see the range of styles and moods depicted. For instance, some were quite dark, using a range of rocking movements, while others were more light-hearted and comedic, incorporating parts of sign language dialogue into the routine. My piece involved using only my hands and arms, which were more delicate, to show vulnerability and change in relationships over time.

The most challenging aspect for me was the Flocking work which is a type of improv where you shadow each other’s movements. The group is in a tight formation, with whoever is at the front being the ‘director’ (deciding on the movements). Everyone mirrors their movement until they decide to change direction, whoever is now at the front takes over, and so on.

This activity was interesting as we worked with different paces, heights, movements and dance styles. We were in a close space, and some movements involved changing positions (e.g., taking a step forward) and movements. I had the extra challenge of having to adapt a lot of the moves on the spot as it was free styling.

But. being a wheelchair user, this meant it can’t, for example, sideways hop effectively. My brain had to process if I could do the dance move, adapt it and then copy – in ‘live’ mode while also actively moving in my chair simultaneously! This was definitely extra challenging, and I felt I needed another set of hands!

The most meaningful moment happened for me at the end of day 2, after we had spent our first day really bonding and feeling like I had known everyone for years rather than a day. We had also been watching everyone’s interpretation of the pieces of communication before we became aware that these pieces would be our solo performances.

There’s something that is so beautiful and difficult to put into words about seeing such diversity in raw and emotive performances, all showing deep connections and completely different styles and tones. It was a truly wonderful moment where it felt like all the pieces were beginning to fit for the first time, and it started to feel like a performance.

The biggest change that I noticed was how on day 1, most hearing performers used speech to communicate and relied either on writing or our wonderful BSL/English interpreters to understand those of us who were Deaf signers.

However, through the week, with the activities involved, 1:1 communication and our bonding through dance/movement and connecting as a group, it was truly wonderful to see how much BSL had been picked up and a commitment to further learning.

Hearing performer, Anna Spencer said: “I loved working creatively with BSL as the primary language. The emphasis on eye contact, spatial awareness and visual/physical communication made me feel peaceful and present. Even though I know very little BSL, I felt connected to thoughts, feelings and other people in a way that is sometimes drowned out in spaces led by hearing people.”

Sadaf Chezari added: “I didn’t have a ‘template’ for communicating with a deaf person. At first, I was self-conscious about not being able to communicate immediately. As the session progressed, I found myself really connected to everyone in the room. I realised that I stopped giving my ears the dominance of hearing, relaxed into hearing with my eyes, and tuned into my body. I found harmony switching between spoken words, written words and using sign language that I was so grateful to pick up.”

It was amazing to use only BSL for the whole project and with other Deaf performers. Having 3 BSL/English interpreters meant that all gaps were bridged for both Hearing and Deaf people involved at all times. I felt at first almost overpowered with emotion – this is what true inclusion felt like. The performance arts can be open to all when accessibility is at the heart of the project rather than as an afterthought.

Each performance was uniquely different and powerful. For example, our first show in Durham was our smallest audience and also brought some challenges in terms of the staging being on two levels and me being a wheelchair user. However, it turned out magically, even with the group piece having to work out some last-minute logistical changes in a smaller amount of space.

For  example, we had to consider being more careful with my wheelchair and how to turn. Comparatively, our Newcastle show naturally had a much larger audience, and the performance was next level. It felt like everyone was really connected and that each creative performer put in 250% of each performance of the show.

I will be forever grateful to have been given this experience.

Written by Jasper Williams.
Photography credits: Nicole Vivien Watson and Chris Younger.