With an understanding of documentary theatre and storytelling, as well as research on the Deaf community, I used these findings to craft a play exploring the elements of selfhood and identity in the Deaf community. Combined with this research, I conducted interviews with people involved in the Deaf community, including audiologists, speech pathologists, educators, and Deaf people. These interviews reflected on the self and identity, as well as personal experiences and memories in this community. Blending these sources of information allowed for the creation of the character “Dee,” a Deaf adult. She opens the play by welcoming the audience to see her story unfold, as she presents a series of flashbacks chronicling her story from diagnosis, to her time in the education system, and finally her current career. Through the flashback scenes, the audience is introduced to her family, teachers, and peers as they tell the story from their perspective. Then, Dee offers her opinion in a brief monologue about her perspective on that particular moment. Sometimes the perspectives align and other times they couldn’t be more contradictory. Overall, Dee tries to provide a complete picture of the situation by offering multiple perspectives and alternatives in this play, Finding Normal.
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