The Quiet Revolution of Laurent Clerc

The Quiet Revolution of Laurent Clerc description

About the Show

Set in 1816, The Quiet Revolution of Laurent Clerc follows a Deaf pioneer who leaves France for America intent on proving himself the equal of anyone in a hearing world. With the young Reverend Thomas Gallaudet he works to establish a school where Deaf children can learn and communicate, but his decision to marry a Deaf woman puts the school's future in danger and forces him to choose between his life's work and his own happiness.

Inspired by the real Laurent Clerc, known as 'the Father of the Deaf', the play combines visual language, four modalities of sign language, spoken English and French, and creative captions. Every performance is captioned and includes British Sign Language. Developed with support from New York Theatre Workshop and four Arts Council England grants, and workshopped at the National Theatre, it is presented by Dreamatorium and Berkshire Playwrights Lab in partnership with Park Theatre.

Cast and Creatives

The play is written by Carol Schneider, a former Broadway and Off-Broadway actor and award-winning audiobook narrator who discovered during her research that she is related to the Gallaudet family. It is directed by Joe Cacaci, whose credits include work at The Public Theater for Joseph Papp and the world premiere of James Tyler's Some Old Black Man. Deepa Shastri is Director of Artistic Sign Language, and Ben Glover designs the video and captions.

Alim Jadavji (EastEnders, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again) plays Thomas Gallaudet, and Zoë McWhinney, a BSL poet and Visual Vernacular performer, plays Eliza Boardman. They are joined by Natalia Campbell and Luna Tosin.

Why You Should Watch It

This new play brings a chapter of Deaf history to the stage in several languages at once. Book your tickets for Park Theatre now.

Playing at Park Theatre (venue info)