Dutch Children of a Lesser God

Children of a Lesser God is a great story with solid human characters. It is also about the emancipation of the Deaf and the importance of sign language. Most people probably know the movie, but it was a theatre play first. And now, there is a plan to produce it in Dutch and Sign Language of the Netherlands (SLN, or Nederlandse Gebarentaal, NGT). But, must the leading Deaf lady Sarah be played by a Deaf lady? Joop van der Ende, the producer, would like to put a big name, Angela Schijf, on the billboards. Much to the dismay of the doof.nl community, it appears. Fortunately (for her) Angela Schijf got pregnant, and one might think this would make the choice easier. Alas, the production is simply put off till the 2007-2008 season.

Tags: Deaf culture, sign language, theatre, education