About eight years ago, a social club for deaf-blind people approached me and asked me to set a drama class for its members. Although I had no previous experience with the subject nor had ever closely known any deaf or blind person, not to mention any deaf-blind, I decided nonetheless to accept the challenge. The general expectation was merely to teach a drama course for several months. Little would I know that this interaction would change my life.
As there is no other deaf-blind theater ensemble anywhere in the world, I had no one to consult with. This is how my journey toward the unknown started. The first and greatest challenge was to find means of communication within a group comprised of people who are both deaf and blind and therefore only know to communicate on a one-to-one basis with the help of personal tactile-sign language interpreters. And then, turn them into actors and form a coherent theater ensemble. Our next objective was to stage our first play in order to pass to a new level of communication, this time with the audience.
After one year of rehearsals we staged our first production "Light is Heard in Zig Zag" which was received with great enthusiasm by audiences both in Israel and abroad. What started as a drama class marked the beginning of a revolution. These deaf-blind individuals, who, all their life, had been dependent on society and assisted, were all of a sudden in an entirely different situation. Standing on the stage, they were no longer ‘the poor ones’, "requesting" commiseration, but those who were in the position to "give", offering their audience the gift of art.
Based on the understanding that all humans are created equal but different and that every person has a right to make his contribution to society, Eran Gur and I decided to establish the "Nalaga’at" non-profit organization. We never planned to turn this unique group into a "regular" theater company, but, as deaf-blind actors, we indeed believed that they ought to perform in the most professional manner. A professional theater ensemble deserves a home. We eventually realized this dream when we completed the renovation of a dilapidated warehouse at the port of Jaffa, in Tel Aviv. In December 2007 the "Nalaga’at" Center opened its gates to the public introducing the "Nalaga’at" Theater of the Deaf-blind Acting Ensemble’s new production – "Not by Bread Alone". The "Nalaga’at" Center also includes Café Kapish, with its deaf waiters and the pitch-black restaurant, BlackOut, with its blind waiters.
The spacious venue soon filled with life and became a home for deaf, blind and deaf-blind people, first and foremost, but also for staff, interpreters and Civic Duty volunteers. Most importantly, it became a place where Jews, Muslims and Christians work together; a place where deaf and blind people find ways to communicate with each other. And it is also the home, if only for a short while, for thousands of people who have already paid it a visit. We came to realize that reality should and can be changed.
I would like to take a moment and look ahead to all that still needs to be done, to dreams that may still become reality, to a home that will become a place where new concepts are taught and learnt, and whose gates will welcome more and more people. A place where questioning is part of the routine.
Our journey has just begun. I invite you to be a part of it.
Adina Tal
Founder, President and Artistic Director
"Nalaga’at" non-profit organization