Carol Schneider's The Quiet Revolution of Laurent Clerc, a play about a pivotal figure in Deaf history, has its world premiere at Park Theatre from 9 July 2027.
Hands, shadow and mime carry much of the story in Carol Schneider's The Quiet Revolution of Laurent Clerc. The staging mixes movement, mime and shadow with four modalities of sign language, spoken English and French, and creative captions. The world premiere runs at the Park Theatre from 9 July - 7 August 2027, with press night on Wednesday 14 July. Joe Cacaci directs.
It opens in 1816, as Laurent Clerc arrives in America from France, set on proving he can hold his own in a hearing world. With the young Reverend Thomas Gallaudet he founds a school where Deaf children can learn and communicate. Then Clerc falls in love, and his plan to marry a Deaf woman puts the school at risk. He has to choose between the institution and the life he wants. The play's tagline: "The war on sign language began as a war on love."
The cast includes Alim Jadavji, Zoë McWhinney, Natalia Campbell and Luna Tosin. Working with Cacaci are associate director Christopher Tester, Director of Artistic Sign Language Deepa Shastri, set designer Calypso Michelet, costume designer Gabriela Correia and video and caption designer Ben Glover. Dreamatorium, Berkshire Playwrights Lab and Park Theatre present it.
The play reaches Park Theatre after a long development, with support from the National Theatre. Earlier versions of the project won awards and led to an award-winning documentary. It extends the theatre's run of Deaf-led and accessible main-stage work, which currently includes BULL, co-produced with Deafinitely Theatre.
It plays in the summer stretch of Park Theatre's 2027 season.
