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The Columbus Dispatch : Feeling the beat
As speakers blasted the boom and bass of the Soulja Boy tune Crank That last week at the Ohio School for the Deaf, students twisted their bodies and crossed their feet, snapped their fingers and raised their arms to the sky.
They didn't hear the beat, but they heeded it in unison.
How?
"Lots of teamwork," said student Makayla Walker, 13. "We just don't give up. We're counting how many beats, how many moves and when to move forward and sideways."
When deaf actress Marlee Matlin appears tonight on Dancing With the Stars, she will rely on other senses, too.
Students in the dance club at the School for the Deaf -- big fans of the ABC competition -- express pride that Matlin will represent deaf dancers in challenging the hearing contestants.
"We are the same," said student Tiffany Warner, 17. "She's deaf; I'm deaf. She can do it; I can do it."
The club members rehearse every week.
To cue the steps, they incorporate body taps -- and intent looks -- into the choreography.
Paying close attention to their partners is considered essential for deaf dancers, said Ashley Frambo, 16.
"You've got to read their body language, read their movements," Frambo said. "I follow them, and I know the next move."
While the deaf don't hear music, they use tactile and visual cues to perform choreography, said Karen Mitchell, vice president and director of audiology and hearing-aid services at the Columbus Speech & Hearing Center.
"You can have the rhythm, the movement even if you don't have hearing," she said. "You follow the timing cues even if you can't hear the music. . . . You follow the pattern of the music."
The vibrations of the beat on the floor also help deaf dancers connect to the music, according to Duane Davis.
"I have to find music that amplifies loudness," said Davis, 18. "It allows me to dance to the beat."
The music is played loud to help students match their steps to the vibrations, said Toska Pearson, coordinator of the dance club.
Dance students who are deaf sometimes lean close to the speakers, said Ron Clark, owner of Dance Plus Ballroom in Grandview Heights.
Others learn the lyrics to add emotion to their performances.
"I feel the music. I love to dance; I love to move," said Warner, who often finds the words to songs and signs them while executing her steps.
"I love the flow of it. I love to use my sign language when I dance and express myself."
Explaining the lyrics is important in helping deaf dancers understand the feelings to be conveyed through their choreography, said Clark, who has taught deaf students throughout his 40 years as a dance instructor.
"You have to have a sense of what the music is saying," he said. "It's acting to music. The hearing-impaired are very expressive through their bodies and their faces."
The dance community, Clark said, is excited about the inclusion of Matlin on Dancing With the Stars.
Yet the dancing stars at the Ohio School for the Deaf are especially counting on Matlin to shine.
"It's a good opportunity," Walker said, "to have someone see us in a positive light."
As speakers blasted the boom and bass of the Soulja Boy tune Crank That last week at the Ohio School for the Deaf, students twisted their bodies and crossed their feet, snapped their fingers and raised their arms to the sky.
They didn't hear the beat, but they heeded it in unison.
How?
"Lots of teamwork," said student Makayla Walker, 13. "We just don't give up. We're counting how many beats, how many moves and when to move forward and sideways."
When deaf actress Marlee Matlin appears tonight on Dancing With the Stars, she will rely on other senses, too.
Students in the dance club at the School for the Deaf -- big fans of the ABC competition -- express pride that Matlin will represent deaf dancers in challenging the hearing contestants.
"We are the same," said student Tiffany Warner, 17. "She's deaf; I'm deaf. She can do it; I can do it."
The club members rehearse every week.
To cue the steps, they incorporate body taps -- and intent looks -- into the choreography.
Paying close attention to their partners is considered essential for deaf dancers, said Ashley Frambo, 16.
"You've got to read their body language, read their movements," Frambo said. "I follow them, and I know the next move."
While the deaf don't hear music, they use tactile and visual cues to perform choreography, said Karen Mitchell, vice president and director of audiology and hearing-aid services at the Columbus Speech & Hearing Center.
"You can have the rhythm, the movement even if you don't have hearing," she said. "You follow the timing cues even if you can't hear the music. . . . You follow the pattern of the music."
The vibrations of the beat on the floor also help deaf dancers connect to the music, according to Duane Davis.
"I have to find music that amplifies loudness," said Davis, 18. "It allows me to dance to the beat."
The music is played loud to help students match their steps to the vibrations, said Toska Pearson, coordinator of the dance club.
Dance students who are deaf sometimes lean close to the speakers, said Ron Clark, owner of Dance Plus Ballroom in Grandview Heights.
Others learn the lyrics to add emotion to their performances.
"I feel the music. I love to dance; I love to move," said Warner, who often finds the words to songs and signs them while executing her steps.
"I love the flow of it. I love to use my sign language when I dance and express myself."
Explaining the lyrics is important in helping deaf dancers understand the feelings to be conveyed through their choreography, said Clark, who has taught deaf students throughout his 40 years as a dance instructor.
"You have to have a sense of what the music is saying," he said. "It's acting to music. The hearing-impaired are very expressive through their bodies and their faces."
The dance community, Clark said, is excited about the inclusion of Matlin on Dancing With the Stars.
Yet the dancing stars at the Ohio School for the Deaf are especially counting on Matlin to shine.
"It's a good opportunity," Walker said, "to have someone see us in a positive light."