Swan Lake and Sign Language

Dear Members,

Thank you for accepting me! I'm very much looking forward to meeting members on here.

Of course I come with a request but I very much hope that you are interested in helping me.

I'm applying for art school for a costume design program here in Berlin, Germany and for my portfolio I want to combine the ballet Swan Lake with sign language. I have always been fascinated by the expressiveness of sign language. If ballet is a graceful way of moving, sign language to me seems like a graceful way of communicating. Therefore, I want to see what happens when I use the movement of sign language to create costumes.

The plan: I have prepared short texts to each relevant character (6) plus a text about swans and I would need videos of these translated into sign language.

Would there be someone or maybe even better several people willing to send me videos of them saying these sentences in sign language? The videos will ONLY be used for my portfolio and not published anywhere else (I can confirm this in written language if you are worried).

I hope that I am not asking too much. I am really excited about this experiment and will be happy to share my costume results with you.

Thank you for reading this! Have a great day!

Lisa

Welcome and good luck on swan lake, sounds like a fun and beautiful idea

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using AllDeaf App mobile app

In Germany, you ought to get in touch with a deaf club, or some deaf services, to get someone to help you with the sign language of your country.

It isn't universal, and ASL is the language of most people here.

Hello Bottesini,

Thank you for the advice! I have thought about it a long time but since I am also fluent in English and dance companies tend to be quite international, I don't see a reason not to use ASL (or IS).

I have tried to get in touch with people here in Germany but so far haven't had much luck.

Lisa_Pea said:

Hello Bottesini,

Thank you for the advice! I have thought about it a long time but since I am also fluent in English and dance companies tend to be quite international, I don't see a reason not to use ASL (or IS).

I have tried to get in touch with people here in Germany but so far haven't had much luck.

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You should use whatever sign language that your audience will most likely understand.

Hello Reba,

Sign language is only an inspiration for the costume design. Therefore the audience would not see actual sign language.

Hello.my opinion with the Swan I seen many times why do you want sign the dance itself tells the story as it spose to which apply to all the ballet shows.
Just opinion it waste of time if feel need to sign then that ballet company would not be doing it. Swan I seen by many different companies I would not want a signer buy programme or read story first....This is my personal opinion

Thank you all for your replies!

But I am not a choreographer, I want to become a costume designer. Therefore there will be no sign language on stage. The dancers will dance ballet.

It is a common practice to use a topic that seems unrelated to the matter to get new inspiration, to help the artist to find new ways. An inspiration should be something one is fascinated with. This for me is sign language.

I need videos of somebody signing my characterizations for the swan lake roles in order to help me develop costumes.

I honestly think doing sign would Not bring any value to the Swan.I seen Afro/American gay futuristic Scot versions..I can think of shows that are the better for Sign Rocky Horror.
I would like think of ways but I can't others may be better.The point of dance you don't need any other form of communication the dance is it

Dear Caz,

I really don't know if I explain it any better, but there is going to be no sign language on stage. This is for the process of designing costumes.

This project is very dear to my heart and I would love to find volunteers who would be willing to take a video of themselves signing for example this text and sending it to me:

"Odile is very delighted to help her father in his evil plan.
She is mesmerizingly beautiful. No one can take their eyes off of her but she lacks honest grace and a kind heart. She plays a game of hide and seek through withdrawing and teasing.
She feels absolute joy that the despicable plan has worked."

Basically I'll translate the sign language into movement, then pattern and then costume. It may sound strange but it's a common way of designing. Thank you for your help!

I not beautiful or can I dance....I was watching the dress designers from strictly come dancing British thing I think I understand she was doing something similar.
Sorry for confusion I hope you do well I sure you will you have passion

Lisa_Pea said:

Hello Reba,

Sign language is only an inspiration for the costume design. Therefore the audience would not see actual sign language.

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If you're not deaf and it's not your language, how will signs inspire you to design? They will have no meaning to you. Some signer could send you a video of signing the Declaration of Independence and tell you that it's about swans and you wouldn't know the difference.

Well, I honestly don't doubt the people in this forum as much as you do. I truly think that if somebody offers to help me they will not abuse their position. Do you?
To be honest I don't understand why you are so urgently trying to dissuade me? If you don't want to help me that's alright but I'm going to do this. I asked simply if somebody could help me.
Thank you.

I could understand the Deaf Community in Germany if you want help from them. But like Reba mentioned, you have to be deaf to understand about the kind of signing you want to make the dress design.

I used to love ballet and had taken ballet classes for many years until I quit in my 20 in order to get employment, not related to dance theatre. I had watched the Swan Lake. Very emotional dance. Beautiful.

I am not familiar with dress design to make some kind of sign language to go with it. I have no idea what you would want to make. I thought you would make the design the exactly what the Swan Lake is suppose to from other patterns of dress design in the past. You could look at the different videos (through the years) of Swan Lake and find the right design you have in mind. I had never thought of dress design for use in sign language before. That would be complicate for me or any of the Deaf community understand what you want to make design.

The translation that you want to make the dress design is difficult for the Deaf like me to understand what you want to put signs on the dresses.

"Odile is very delighted to help her father in his evil plan.
She is mesmerizingly beautiful. No one can take their eyes off of her but she lacks honest grace and a kind heart. She plays a game of hide and seek through withdrawing and teasing.
She feels absolute joy that the despicable plan has worked."

The sign language does not related very well with the dress design. It has to be performed on stage with the dancers doing the signing. I am sorry I could not help you with that. This is different and complicate. You would not understand the Deaf Culture perspective.

another example of hearing "fetish-ness" ......you know nothing about the ' fascination' you proclaim..........

Hello Bebonang,

Thank you for your long reply. I understand now that I might be addressing this the wrong way. But the main idea is that the sign language doesn't have to match my dress design but the other way around. I'm currently studying movement of all sorts - dancing, city movement, abstract things as movement of music.

The good thing about an inspiration is that it forces you to adress something completely different. I cannot tell you what the costumes will look like. The basic idea is to put sign language movements into lines and areas. I know it's abstract.

If I have offended anyone I apologize. This was not my intention. My fascination goes as far that I do intend to learn sign language.

I guess we're not getting how you can be inspired by a language that you don't understand.

If you're serious about this, I suggest you hire a professional ASL interpreter and let the terp do what you need. They are trained for that (I know; I'm a retired one.) People who are fluent in their own native languages aren't necessarily skilled in interpreting, especially for the arts. What you are asking for is a language interpretation.

Reba said:

If you're not deaf and it's not your language, how will signs inspire you to design? They will have no meaning to you. Some signer could send you a video of signing the Declaration of Independence and tell you that it's about swans and you wouldn't know the difference.

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That's a very good point.