ASL Team Brings New Dimension to The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
SEP 7, 2011
Veteran interpreters Elbert “EJ” Joseph and Christopher Robinson gave an extraordinary performance last night. Not only did they translate every moment of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess into American Sign Language– perfectly in sync with the action onstage and the rhythm of Gershwin’s score– but also communicated the raw emotional intensity of the sung moments in a way that I could never had anticipated. I was rapt, watching these guys perform “Bess, You Is My Woman Now.” EJ may not be mistaken for Audra McDonald anytime soon, but the intensity and fluidity of his singining perfectly communicated the essence of Audra’s Bess. Christopher’s performance of “I Got Plenty of Nothing” was a show-stopper.
We at the A.R.T. couldn’t be more grateful for the hard work and talent of Christopher and EJ, as well as the guidance of ASL coach Mikey Krajnak.
Watch EJ and Christopher at our second ASL-interpreted performance of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess—
Sunday, September 11th, at 2:00 PM
Call the Box Office at 617.547.8300 or click here to purchase ASL-accessible tickets.
On September 6th, the A.R.T. had its first American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted performance of The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess. Read more on the A.R.T. blog!
