How technology makes an opera for the deaf possible

In the Netherlands, 1.5 million people are deaf or hard of hearing. Of this group, approximately 30,000 people depend on sign language. Virtually none of them are ever seen in the theater. Why not?

"Why would they," says Jerzy Bielski. "There are almost no performances made that are accessible to them." "We might think our cultural sector is inclusive," adds Thomas Brand, "But it’s not. That became clear when we started this project."

Why an opera for the deaf?

Composer Jerzy Bielski and filmmaker Thomas Brand, together with a choreographer and an audiovisual artist, form the core of the Futurists. Since its founding in 2018, they have been creating innovative performances in which technology is used to create new forms of music theater.

Their latest project is 'Fish dance when they are not sleeping'. An opera for and with the deaf in collaboration with the Dutch National Opera and ENOA (European Network of Opera Academies). It sounds radical, and it is, but that happens to be somewhat of the Futurists’ trademark.

How do you involve new creators?

Filmmaker Thomas Brand: "By doing research. When we started, we didn’t know any deaf people, so we reached out to organizations. We wanted to talk to deaf people, understand what the deaf community looks like, and find out if there are deaf performers in the Netherlands."

They exist. Almost all of them are working on 'Fish dance when they are not sleeping'. Jerzy: "We didn’t want to create something for them, but with them. Collaborating from the start to create something new that appeals to both deaf and hearing audiences."

Equality is the starting point

Thomas: "It’s about equality, not about putting the deaf in the spotlight. Our performance is not a social project." And so deaf and hearing performers have been working together in the rehearsal room from day one. With the help of sign language interpreters, they experiment. Jerzy: "We learned that rhythm works differently for deaf people than for hearing people. Deaf people obviously don’t hear rhythm, but they can count beats and feel vibrations. This allows us to create percussion compositions based on sign language."

Thomas: "Sign language is incredibly musical. It involves movement, poetry, and expression. It’s much more nuanced than spoken Dutch. If you say ‘sea,’ hearing people know what you mean. If you want to sign ‘sea,’ there isn’t just one sign for it. You nuance: how big is that sea? What are the weather conditions?"

Jerzy: "That inspired us to create a completely new language together. A means of communication between hearing and deaf people. We’ve made music visual and sign language audible."

Technology gives the deaf a stage

Thomas: "Together with an electronic sound artist, we devised a system that translates the audio parameters of instruments (pitch, volume, rhythm) into animations. With a computer program, we can display on a video screen what someone is playing on an instrument."

"At the same time, we use motion sensors that register data from signing hands. This data is also visible on the screen. We make that information audible by linking sounds to signs. This creates an intermediate world where hearing and deaf people can communicate with each other in an abstract way via the screen."

Jerzy: "Both deaf and hearing audiences respond enthusiastically to our experiments. They love seeing deaf performers collaborate with hearing ones. The biggest compliment? Deaf people greatly appreciate being treated equally. Inclusion is creating something for everyone, not specifically for one group."

Tips from the Futurists

• Forget your ego. Start by listening and don’t rigidly hold onto your own artistic vision.
• Use technology from the start, not just at the end of a project.
• Don’t make a social project; treat your target audience equally.
• Test everything you do, adjust what doesn’t work.
• Build bridges first. Only when you have something that works can you make it beautiful.

Curious? 'Fish dance when they are not sleeping' premieres in 2024. Keep an eye on futurists.nl for performance dates.