Filename:
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ds_0064_cookeaton_cap_01.mp4
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Identifier:
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ds_0064_cookeaton_cap_01.mp4
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Title:
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An African American film story ; Play with ASL!
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Creator:
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Eaton, Isias
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Subject:
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American Sign Language literature
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Subject:
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Deaf, Writings of the, American
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Subject:
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Deaf, Theater for the
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Subject:
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Storytelling
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Subject:
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Mime
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Subject:
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Deaf Poetry
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Subject:
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ASL poetry
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Summary:
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Isias Eaton leads several other players in a performance incorporating sign mime, ASL, and video art to tell the story of African Americans' enslavement and struggle for freedom. Next, Peter Cook demonstrates techniques which help students to expand their potential in creating with ASL. A videotape of student work produced during Cook's residencies at Lexington and Fanwood schools is shown. In addition, students from Lexington and Fanwood schools give a short performance. The short performance is about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
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Publisher:
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National Technical Institute for the Deaf
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Digital Publisher:
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Rochester Institute of Technology - RIT Libraries - RIT Archive Collections
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Contributor:
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Cook, Peter S.
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Contributor:
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American Sign Language Literature Conference (2nd 1996 National Technical Institute for the Deaf)
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Date of Original:
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1996
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Date of Digitization:
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2018
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Broad Type:
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moving image
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Digital File Format:
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mp4
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Physical Format:
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VHS
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Dimensions of Original:
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56 minutes
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Language:
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American Sign Language
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Language:
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English
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Original Item Location:
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RITDSA.0064
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Library Collection:
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Sculptures in the Air: An Accessible Online Video Repository of the American Sign Language (ASL) Poetry and Literature Collections
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Library Collection:
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Karen Christie ASL Literature Collection
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Digital Project:
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2018-2019 CLIR Grant-ASL Poetry and Literature
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Catalog Record:
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https://albert.rit.edu/record=b3955846
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Catalog Record:
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https://archivesspace.rit.edu/repositories/2/resources/852
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Place:
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New York - Rochester
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RIT Spaces and Places:
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Henrietta Campus
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Rights:
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RIT Libraries makes materials from its collections available for educational and research purposes pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. It is your responsibility to obtain permission from the copyright holder to publish or reproduce images in print or electronic form.
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Rights:
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CC BY-NC-ND: Attribution NonCommercial NoDerivatives 4.0 International
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Transcript:
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[LAUGHTER]
[LAUGHTER]
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[LAUGHTER]
WOMAN: I THINK I'M GONNA TALK
ABOUT HOW I FINALLY ARRIVED
AT THIS PRODUCT
AND WHAT MY ROAD
TO GET IT TO THIS
POINT WAS LIKE.
I THINK I HAVE TO START
AND GO BACK TO 1986.
AND IF YOU
COME ALONG WITH ME,
WHERE WE'RE GOING TO
GO TO IS TEXAS.
I THINK YOU'RE FAMILIAR
WITH BIG SPRING, TEXAS.
THERE'S THE SOUTHWEST
TECHNICAL SCHOOL THERE.
MAN: COLLEGIATE
INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF.
WOMAN: SOUTHWEST COLLEGIATE
INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF.
AND I BEGAN TO WORK
WITH STUDENTS.
AND WHEN I DID...
I WORKED WITH STUDENTS
WHO TRADITIONALLY
HAD BEEN CRITICIZED
FOR THE USE OF ENGLISH,
HAD HAD PROBLEMS WITH
WORKING IN ENGLISH
AND THE RELATIONSHIP
WITH THEIR STUDENTS
WHO ARE ESTRANGED
BECAUSE OF ALL OF THIS.
WHEN A TEACHER LOOKED AT
THE STUDENT'S PRODUCT,
IT WOULD SAY, "YESTERDAY, ME
YESTERDAY HAD A LOT OF FUN."
"I WAS IN A CAR THAT
WENT VERY, VERY FAST."
"WENT TO THE MALL.
MET A BEAUTIFUL GIRL,
"VERY, VERY BEAUTIFUL,
AND WE DANCED
THE NIGHT LONG."
AND WHEN I LOOKED
AT THEIR STORIES,
I'D SAY, "YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU
TOLD ME AND WHAT YOU WRITE
IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT."
[CHUCKLING]
[LAUGHTER]
WELL, THE STUDENTS THEMSELVES
CREATED THIS PARTICULAR STORY.
AND I LOOKED AT THEIR WRITTEN
WORK, AND I SAID,
"WHERE'S THE STORY
YOU JUST TOLD ME?
IT'S NOT EVEN CLOSE TO WHAT
YOU'VE WRITTEN FOR ME."
WELL, IT'S THE SAME
OLD PROBLEM, ISN'T IT?
THERE'S BEEN A LONG-AGE
PROBLEM AND FRUSTRATION
WITH THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
MORE OFTEN, STUDENTS
HAVE BEEN CONTINUALLY
AND THROUGH YEARS CRITICIZED
ABOUT HOW THEY NEED TO
WORK IN ENGLISH.
AND LATER IN LIFE,
THEY'RE TURNED DOWN
FOR JOB OPPORTUNITIES
AGAIN BECAUSE OF THEIR
LACK OF COMMAND WITH ENGLISH.
MAN: THEY WOULD BE TURNED DOWN.
WOMAN: AND THEY WOULD BE TURNED
DOWN FROM GALLAUDET OR NTID
BASED ON THEIR WRITTEN
APPLICATIONS AS WELL.
BUT WHEN YOU LOOK
AT THEIR SKILLS
IN THEIR OWN NATIVE LANGUAGE,
THEY'VE GOT EXQUISITE
LANGUAGE...COMMAND.
AND BASED ON THEIR
NATURAL NATIVE LANGUAGE,
THEY SHOULD BE SUCCESSFUL
IN ANY VENTURE THEY TAKE.
[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
WOMAN: BUT THE PROBLEM IS
IS BECAUSE THEIR FRUSTRATION
WITH THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE,
THEY'VE LOST THEIR CONFIDENCE
IN EXPRESSING THEMSELVES...
[LAUGHTER]
THAT THEIR RELATIONSHIP
WITH THEIR ENGLISH TEACHERS
HAS UNDERMINED
THEIR PERFORMANCE
AND RESULTING IN A GREAT
LACK OF CONFIDENCE.
AND I GUESS I HAVE TO
LOOK BACK TO MY OWN LIFE
AND FIND OUT WHERE I GAINED
MY LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE
AS A DEAF PERSON.
YOU KNOW, IT HAPPENED
RIGHT IN THIS VERY SPOT,
RIGHT ON THIS STAGE.
I CAME TO COLLEGE HERE.
I'M AN ALUMNUS OF NTID.
I CAME HERE, AND THEY KNOW I
DIDN'T KNOW MUCH SIGN LANGUAGE,
BUT I COMMUNICATED
IN ANY WAY THAT I COULD.
AND I WAS PUT UNDER THE WING
OF THE THEATER DEPARTMENT.
AND THE FIRST THING
I HAD TO TACKLE
WAS A SHAKESPEAREAN PLAY.
IT WAS THE TEMPEST.
WELL, UNKNOWING WHAT
WAS GOING TO HAPPEN,
I SAID, "SURE.
I'D TAKE IT."
[LAUGHTER]
I WAS GIVEN THE ROLE
OF CALIBAN,
WHICH WAS RIGHT FOR ME.
THERE'S VERY LITTLE LANGUAGE.
IT WAS A DIRTY OLD
KIND OF CHARACTER.
AND I DIDN'T MIND.
I KNEW VERY LITTLE
ABOUT THE TRADITIONAL
CHARACTERIZATION OF CALIBAN.
OF COURSE, THEN THERE'S
THE PROBLEM OF LOOKING
AT THE ENGLISH PRINTED WORD
OF SHAKESPEAREAN LANGUAGE
AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
WHAT TO DO IT INTO TRANSLATION.
WELL, I WAS LUCKY.
PATRICK GRAYBILL WAS INVOLVED
IN THIS PARTICULAR PRODUCTION
AND PLAYED THE LEADING ROLE
IN "THE TEMPEST."
MAN: PROSPERO...
WOMAN: THE CHARACTER
HE PLAYED WAS PROSPERO.
I LEARNED MORE FROM HIM AND MORE
FROM THE OTHER COLLABORATORS
IN THE PRODUCTION,
AND THAT'S WHAT ACTUALLY GAVE
MY LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE.
I FOUND MY OWN IDENTITY.
AND THAT RESULTED IN
THE B.A.D.--
[LAUGHTER]
THE BORN-AGAIN DEAF.
ABSOLUTELY! I'M AS BAD
AS THEY COME!
BORN-AGAIN DEAF.
NOW, YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND.
I'M A LITTLE LATE.
GOT A BIT OF A LATE START IN
TERMS OF LEARNING SIGN LANGUAGE
AND KNOWING MY IDENTITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, MANY OF
US--GOOD 90% OF US--
HAVE HEARING PARENTS,
NO LANGUAGE ROLE MODELS.
BUT THOSE WHO ARE LEFT
TO THE MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS
AND THE HEARING SCHOOLS,
WE REALLY DON'T HAVE
THE ROLE MODELS
THAT OTHERS DO
AS SCHOOLS FOR THE DEAF.
AND TYPICALLY A LOT OF US
WHO ARE DEAF
AND DON'T HAVE DEAF PARENTS
GET A PRETTY LATE START.
AND THEY MAY COME TO
THE PLACE WHERE I AM--
BEING A BAD!
NOW, YOU KNOW, THE DEVELOPMENT
OF OUR CONFIDENCE
REALLY SHOULD START
IN THE EARLIER YEARS IN SCHOOL.
WE CERTAINLY SHOULD HAVE
ATTAINED A LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE
BY THE TIME WE GOT
TO HIGH SCHOOL,
BUT REMEMBER WHAT ELSE
WE'RE DEALING WITH--
PUBERTY, RAGING EMOTIONS,
TRYING TO GET THROUGH THOSE
YEARS OF ADOLESCENCE.
I MEAN, WE'RE DEALING
WITH ENOUGH.
I MEAN, YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER
THOSE YEARS, DON'T YOU?
IT'S A TIME OF TURMOIL
FOR ALL OF US,
CERTAINLY A LOT
TO DEAL WITH.
AND THEN ON TOP OF IT, TO
LOOK FOR YOUR OWN IDENTITY
IS QUITE A DEAL TO TAKE ON.
MAN: TO TEACH ASL...
WOMAN: AHEM. NOW, TO TEACH--
HAD I BEEN TAUGHT
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE
LITERATURE AT THAT TIME,
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN
A VERY DIFFERENT STORY.
MAN: IN CHICAGO...
WOMAN: IN CHICAGO...
MAN: ...OF THEIR CULTURE.
WOMAN: A LOT OF US ARE PRODUCT
OF OUR CULTURE, AREN'T WE?
IN CHICAGO...
IF YOU LOOK AT ANY CULTURE,
ANY CULTURE HAS PRODUCTS
FROM THEIR CULTURE.
FOR AFRICANS, FOR EXAMPLE,
WHAT ARE THE PRODUCTS
OF THEIR CULTURE?
THEIR DANCE, CERTAINLY
THEIR CLOTHING AND DRESS.
WHAT ELSE IS A PRODUCT
OF AFRICAN CULTURE?
THE DRUMMING, THE MUSIC,
THE ARTICLES AND ARTIFACTS
THAT THEY TRADE.
CERTAINLY THE TRADITION
OF STORYTELLING.
YES. ETHNIC FOODS
AND THE RELIGION, TOO.
YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE
IDENTIFIABLE...CULTURAL...
PRODUCTS...AND CERTAINLY
CHARACTERISTICS.
BUT YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE
THE SAME KIND OF THING.
DO WE HAVE SOMETHING
CALLED DEAF FOOD?
DO WE HAVE SOMETHING
CALLED DEAF DANCE?
I SUSPECT MAYBE WHAT
I DO RIGHT HERE COULD BE.
IS THERE A DEAF GOD?
MAN: THERE'S A DEAF GOD...
WOMAN: AN EARLIER
PRESENTER THIS WEEKEND,
CHARLES ..., WHO PLAYS
THE DEAF GOD,
WE SAW HIS PRESENTATION OF IT.
BUT I DO THINK THE ONE
PRODUCT OF OUR CULTURE
CLEARLY IS
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE,
AND IT'S RICH.
WE'VE SPENT NOTHING
BUT THE LAST 2 DAYS
TALKING ABOUT
HOW MUCH THERE IS
IN THAT PARTICULAR PART
OF OUR CULTURE
IN AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE.
AND THE SHARING WE'VE DONE
IN THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS
AND WITH EACH OTHER
IS ONLY HAVING
THE VOLUME OF
OUR LITERATURE GROW.
HOW MANY OF YOU IN THIS AUDIENCE
HERE JUST LOVE TO COOK?
WE CAN EXCHANGE RECIPES
A LITTLE LATER, MAYBE?
AND WHAT WE'LL
MAKE TODAY IS SOUP.
ARE YOU READY
TO MAKE MY SOUP?
HERE IT IS.
LET ME PRESENT FOR YOU
A GREAT BIG POT.
AND ANY TIME YOU
START WITH A SOUP,
YOU START WITH A BASE,
AND ANY RECIPE FOR SOUP
HAS A GOOD BASE.
AND IN THAT BASE WILL BE ALL
OF OUR NON-MANUAL BEHAVIORS.
CERTAINLY! VERY IMPORTANT
PART OF THE SOUP.
OUR BODY LANGUAGE...
AND GESTURES.
NOT SIGNS, SPECIFICALLY.
I'M REALLY TALKING
ABOUT GESTURES.
THE RESULT OF ALL
OF THIS THING
IS A MORE VISUAL
PRODUCT IN THE END...
RESULTING IN A CLARITY
IN THE WORK.
BUT EACH ONE OF THESE
INGREDIENTS INTO OUR SOUP,
PARTICULARLY IN OUR BASE.
THE WAY WE PRODUCE OUR SIGNS
IS ALSO A PART OF THIS SOUP.
I MEAN, YOU COULDN'T MAKE
THE SIGN THE WRONG WAY
SO THE PRODUCTION IS EQUALLY
IMPORTANT INGREDIENT.
AND THE CLASSIFIERS.
WE HAVE MORE CLASSIFIERS
IN OUR LANGUAGE
THAT CAN GIVE COLOR, SOUND,
AND ADD IN EVERY KIND
OF FLAVOR TO OUR SOUP.
[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
WOMAN: AHEM.
SO WE HAVE A POOL
OF CLASSIFIERS.
WE'VE GOT TONS OF THEM.
WE ADD ALL OF THESE
THINGS INTO OUR SOUP.
AND WE STIR IT AND LET
IT BOIL AND SIMMER,
BUT YOU KNOW,
YOU DO HAVE TO WAIT.
YOU CAN'T DO THIS TOO FAST.
YOU KNOW, TAKES A LITTLE
PATIENCE AND SOME PRACTICE,
BUT IT'S NOT THE EASIEST WORK.
AND NOW WE'RE READY
FOR THE VEGETABLES IN OUR SOUP.
AND THE VEGETABLES
[INDISTINCT] ARE VARIED.
BUT THE VEGETABLES
TO THIS PARTICULAR SOUP
ARE ALL THE IDEAS,
THE THEMES...
AND WE PUT THAT
INTO OUR SOUP.
NOW OCCASIONALLY
WE HAVE TO TASTE IT
AND MAKE SURE IT'S GOING
THE WAY WE WANT IT TO,
AND SPICE IS USUALLY
THE NEXT THING TO ADD.
NOW, OUR SPICES. WE HAVE MANY
CHOICES FOR THIS AS WELL.
AND THOSE ARE THE TECHNIQUES
THAT WE USE TO DO WHAT WE DO.
FOR EXAMPLE, HAND SHAPES...
THE ABC STORIES...
OUR NUMBER STORIES...
AND WHAT YOU SAW IN OUR EARLIER
FILM "TRANSFORMATION."
LET ME TAKE A MINUTE
TO TALK ABOUT "TRANSFORMATION."
WHEN A SIGN HAS
A SMOOTH TRANSITION
INTO A UNIQUELY
DIFFERENT SIGN,
THAT IS A TRANSFORMATION.
FOR EXAMPLE...
THERE'S A PARTICULAR STUDENT
THAT'S NOT WITH OUR GROUP.
THE STUDENT IS KELLY.
HE'S GOT SOME IMAGINATION
AND SKILLS.
HE DOES THIS.
IT'S A BEAUTIFUL TRANSFORMATION,
IF YOU LOOK AT ONE SIGN
THAT GOES INTO A COMPLETELY
UNIQUELY DIFFERENT ONE.
AND, FOR EXAMPLE...
DO YOU REMEMBER
YESTERDAY MORNING,
WE TALKED ABOUT HOW WE
CAN USE JUST ONE HAND?
YOU SAW HIS CHARACTERIZATION
WHERE HE DID ALL OF HIS STORY
WITH JUST ONE HAND.
THAT'S THE KIND OF WORK
WE SHOULD BE DOING.
THAT'S WHAT A TRANSFORMATION IS.
AND IN ALL OF THE WORKS
THAT WE'VE SEEN
THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS, YOU'LL
SEE A LOT OF TRANSFORMATIONS.
NOW, SPEED IS ANOTHER
INGREDIENT,
AND IT DOESN'T ALWAYS
MEAN FAST.
IT MEANS SLOW. IT GIVES
EMPHASIS TO THE PIECE.
FOR EXAMPLE...
THAT'S NORMAL SPEED, RIGHT?
HERE'S SLOW SPEED.
SEE? AND THAT PARTICULAR USE
OF SPEED--SLOW IN THIS CASE--
GIVES EMPHASIS TO THE WORK.
AND SLOWER.
[LAUGHTER]
[APPLAUSE]
AND THE NEXT SPICE.
IT HAPPENS ANY TIME
THAT DEAF PEOPLE GET TOGETHER,
BE IT AT THEIR SCHOOLS
OR AT DEAF CLUBS OR WHATEVER,
THERE'S ALWAYS ONE
PERSON STANDING THERE
AND ANOTHER ONE
PUTTING THEIR HANDS THROUGH.
THAT'S ALSO AN INGREDIENT.
NOW, YOU SAW A GROUP
OF STUDENTS WORKING TOGETHER.
THAT IS ALSO A TECHNIQUE TO USE.
AND SOMETHING THAT'S
A LITTLE NEWER.
I'VE BEEN LOOKING INTO OTHER
ART MEDIUM, LIKE DANCE,
VISUAL ARTS...
THEATER.
AND BORROWING FROM
DIFFERENT CULTURES,
WE SAW A PERFORMANCE
FROM ISIAS LAST NIGHT.
AND HE BORROWED FROM
AFRICAN CULTURE
AND PUT IT INTO HIS PIECE.
SO AFRICAN CULTURE,
AFRICAN DANCE INTO A PIECE
ARE ALL TECHNIQUES
WE CAN BORROW FROM AND USE.
THEY'RE AN IMPORTANT
INGREDIENT IN OUR SOUP.
AND THERE'S MANY MORE.
AND I'M SURE THERE'S SOME
WE HAVEN'T EVEN TALKED ABOUT
OR DISCOVERED YET.
AND WHEN IT'S READY,
IT'S DELICIOUS.
WE'VE HAD MANY GOOD
EXAMPLES OF THIS
THROUGH THE LAST
COUPLE OF DAYS.
WE'VE TASTED THE SOUP
OF CLAYTON VALLI
OF ELLA MAE LENTZ,
OF PATRICK GRAYBILL.
AND WE ALL HAVE A LOT
MORE TO DO IN TERMS OF
CREATING OUR OWN WORKS.
AND OUR YOUTH, OUR DEAF YOUTH
ARE ALL HUNGRY TO EXPERIMENT
AND PLAY AND MAKE THEIR
OWN WORKS COME ALIVE.
IT MEANS ALL OF US, WHETHER WE
WORK IN SCHOOLS OR IN THEATERS,
HAVE A LARGE RESPONSIBILITY
TO MAKE SURE THAT
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE
LITERATURE
IS PART OF THE CURRICULUM
AND PART OF THE WORK THAT WE DO.
I MEAN, SURE, THERE'S
MATH AND SCIENCE
AND THE REGULAR
CURRICULUM ITEMS.
MAN: PEOPLE SAY THERE'S
NOT ENOUGH TIME...
WOMAN: AND PEOPLE SAY THAT
THERE'S NEVER ENOUGH TIME
TO DO THINGS LIKE ASL
LITERATURE OR DEAF STUDIES.
MAN: IT'S IMPORTANT FOR DEAF
TO HAVE SKILLS...
WOMAN: IT'S AN IMPORTANT
FOR COGNITIVE SKILLS,
FOR PROBLEM SOLVING,
FOR ALL OF THE SKILLS
THAT WE USE IN OUR EVERYDAY
LIFE TO HAVE THESE TOOLS
IN ORDER TO DO
INTERPRETATION, ANALYSIS.
TO LEAD DISCUSSIONS, TO BECOME
THE LEADERS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE NEED ALL OF THESE SKILLS.
AND EACH OF THESE SKILLS
APPLY TO ALL THE OTHER SUBJECTS
WE DEAL WITH IN OUR WHOLE LIVES.
POETRY...
MAN: ...INFUSED
IN THE CURRICULUM.
WOMAN: NEEDS TO BE INFUSED
THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE
CURRICULUM IN OUR SCHOOLS.
SO MY WORDS DON'T NEED
TO BE SAID ANYMORE.
I'LL LET MY STUDENTS
SHOW YOU THEIR OWN WORKS.
THE FILM THAT YOU SAW
WAS DONE 3 YEARS AGO.
WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE SOON
IS MORE RECENT WORK.
I WAS AN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE
WITH SOME OF THESE STUDENTS
AT THEIR SCHOOLS.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS
FOR ABOUT A YEAR.
AND IF I COULD
ASK MY STUDENTS
TO JOIN ME ON STAGE
AT THIS TIME.
THE FIRST PIECE
IS ENTITLED "1963."
MAN: WHOO!
[APPLAUSE]
"SOLDIER."
[APPLAUSE]
"HOT SPANISH NIGHT."
[APPLAUSE]
"MISS AMERICA."
[LAUGHTER]
[APPLAUSE]
THE NEXT PIECE
IS ENTITLED "WAR."
[APPLAUSE]
"THE BOXER."
[LAUGHTER]
[APPLAUSE]
"SLAVES."
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Notes:
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"This project is supported by a Digitizing Hidden Collections grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). The grant program is made possible by funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation."
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