Picture via Vulture.com
The award-winning play Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris recently opened up in NYC to much acclaim. Although the play mainly focuses on issues related to racism and the gentrifications of neighborhoods, what is really striking about the play was it's casual, yet utterly offensive approach to deafness. It treats ableism like a joke, using one of the character's, Betsey (played by Anna Parisse), disability as a punch-line.
Deaf in a hearing world, Betsey who is also extremely (about to burst) pregnant is left out of most conversations, struggling to follow with her minimal lip reading. When she speaks, her voice is revealed to be completely off-tune—she sounds like a stereotypical person who is deaf. Yet, nevertheless, she tries to make a presence: she attempts to follow, to converse and to interact with the other characters but to little avail.
Deaf in a hearing world, Betsey who is also extremely (about to burst) pregnant is left out of most conversations, struggling to follow with her minimal lip reading. When she speaks, her voice is revealed to be completely off-tune—she sounds like a stereotypical person who is deaf. Yet, nevertheless, she tries to make a presence: she attempts to follow, to converse and to interact with the other characters but to little avail.
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