Romeo and Juliet

Creating art that has a positive cultural impact while also being accessible to the deaf community has been my goal over the span of my 14-year career as a director. By producing Romeo and Juliet in Brazilian sign language, I am promoting the visual poetry of Shakespeare’s text along with the materiality of body language. By integrating video installation and video mapping onto a theatrical stage, I invite you to enter this hybrid universe and immerse yourself in the streets of Verona during the iconic Brazilian carnival! With this enchanting production, cultural accessibility is enlightened by an ensemble cast of deaf actors. It is here you will see how the love of two young deaf people blossoms despite the sensationalist media—more interested in promoting blind hatred than compassion—that tries to suffocate their love. Where we know the conflicts of the Brazilian Verona city, from the contrast between the cold metal structure, a reference to the reduced scenography of Dogville (Trier, 2002), and the pulsation of carnival colors of the Black Orpheus (Camus, 1959) as a poetry element of the text in sign language. It is my intention to bring a unique sensory experience to Shakespeare’s beloved text. Each viewer is provoked and challenged to consider their participation in a world that too often releases art for listening-able audiences. It is my sincere promise that once you’ve seen my adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, you will be transformed and bedazzled with its contemporary tale!