Deaf West Theatre has entered the post-Big River era lately, with its recent production of “One Act Plays: Krapp’s Last Tape and Zoo Story” following in the footsteps of Open Window, which was performed at the venerable Pasadena Playhouse. Now, Deaf West’s latest offering is Sleeping Beauty Wakes, starring Alexandria Wailes and Russell Harvard, along with Troy Kotsur, Deanne Bray, and others, both deaf and hearing actors.

Although the play’s official opening is this Saturday evening, April 7 (the show’s sold out, from what I understand), it’s already opened this past weekend. The Los Angeles Times has published a review (with a typically “hearing” headline: “Poetry in the Hands”), and there’s a discussion on the board at BroadwayWorld.com. Apparently the show is generating some positive buzz, and that’s good, considering that according to Erika Amato, seats were 75% sold out– that was as of March 15. It’s now April, so…
We’re looking forward to seeing the show, and I’ll post my thoughts once we’ve been there, done that. Hopefully, if it’s as good as the brief glimpse I saw earlier last month at a special PR session and “preview” at GLAD, it just might stretch its run. Maybe, maybe not. But lightning does strike twice– if Big River could do it, it’s possible Sleeping Beauty Wakes could too.

There’s a special performance on April 8 (I believe tickets are no longer available) that will benefit GLAD, and a number of people in the L.A. area will attend, so it’s possible we’ll all be seeing a number of reviews before long.

The exposure through popular culture lately has been great, I think, regardless of whatever flaws exist. From “Through Deaf Eyes” to “Law and Order” to Sleeping Beauty Awakes, more and more people are being introduced and exposed to ASL and Deaf culture. Even if it’s not fully “our story” or the types of performance or ASL use we’d like to see, it’s all beneficial in the long run I think. ASL and Deafness now isn’t shunted to the sidelines– it’s on TV, in the theater, and showcased as normal and a part of our daily lives and experiences. I’m just glad that in spite of the recent budget cuts from the feds, Deaf West is not only surviving, but persevering, and even blossoming. I’m also happy that we live in an area where we have access to the arts.

But of course, the big question here is, will our Deaf Sleeping Beauty live Happily Ever After? I’ll have to wait a while longer to find out for sure.