Deaf Monologues is a must-see event

Members of the Austin deaf community and deaf students of Austin Community College gave their third annual performance entitled "Deaf Monologues: A Tapestry of Deaf Experiences" at the Eastview campus April 21 and 22, in which they shared aspects of their lives.

"Every year [the performances] have gotten better and better, [because] more people have gotten involved and it's become more professional," said ACC Deaf Studies Advisor Erika Domatti-Thomas.

In 2004 ACC deaf students held a show entitled "Can You Hear Me," a compilation of vignettes dealing with communication in the home and things such as how hearing parents communicate with their deaf child and vice versa.

"The vignettes were basically between parents and doctors," said Domatti-Thomas. "In one case two deaf parents were sad their child was hearing, but then became positive and decided they would include their child in deaf culture."

Following the 2004 show, a panel was held to discuss deaf issue. After success of "Can You Hear Me," another performance was given in 2005, in the form of a play titled "A Day in the Life of an ACC Student."

"The play went through the day of a deaf ACC student, such as how they get up in the morning, since they can't use an alarm clock, to how it feels using the tutoring lab and other school facilities," said Domatti-Thomas.

The play was later performed at a conference for the Association on Higher Education and Disability.

This year's show included Chuck Beird, a local deaf performer, who helped design the advertising poster.

"Deaf Monologues" was a compilation of monologues dealing with subjects such as family, culture and sex.

"[The play] is based on interviews with Austin Deaf folk. The play maps the diversity of their experiences - some unique to the teller, others common to many," said co- director Andrea Fernandez.

The monologues ranged from comedy to tragedy and garnered positive reactions from the audience.

Notable monologues were "My Innocence Burst," told by Roy Jones, Lance Mann, and Michael Singleton, in which Singleton told a hilarious story about a big brother who tricks his younger sibling into buying a condom and blowing it up in a restaurant bathroom, telling him it is balloon.

Another hilarious monologue was "One of the Girls" told by Roy Jones. Full of dramatic and silly expressions, Jones told of a boy's quest and steadfastness in the face of ridicule to become a cheerleader so that he can be with the women.

There were sad monologues too, such as "Feeling Alone," told by April Alonso, in which a deaf boy feeling alone and depressed bashes his head in with a rock. Although tragic and sincere, the monologue ends happily when the little boy gains a companion and instantly bonds with his new little sister who is also born deaf.

Monologues were told of triumphant times such as "Against the Odds," told by Be Jo Goodridge, a story about how her academic advisor did not think she would make it through college and how she proved her wrong by going to college and graduating.

The show received great praise from audience members as they stood waving their hands in the air, the deaf form of applause. If one did not get to see the performances, they should stay tuned to see what happens next year.