Adele recently described how the “brutal” reaction of fans to the cancellation of her Las Vegas concerts had left her feeling like a “shell of a person”, but Adele has now drawn praise for having sign language experts at her gigs.
Two signers appeared on big screens last weekend as they took turns to translate the star’s 17-song setlist during her concerts at London’s Hyde Park as part of the British Summertime festival. Sources close to Adele, 34, said it was important to the singer that her deaf fans were able to enjoy her performances.
“Adele is a progressive woman and inclusivity is important to her, so the fact there is a way deaf people can enjoy her music and the atmosphere of a gig makes her happy,” said the insider.
A source at the shows echoed those sentiments, saying that “there are some great acts on and it doesn’t seem fair that those who can’t hear or are hard of hearing can’t enjoy the experience”.
“It has worked so it looks like it will be done more and more,” they said.
American grunge rockers Pearl Jam had a signer on Friday when they performed as part of the British Summertime festival, and Duran Duran are expected to use one Sunday evening.
While deaf or partially deaf music fans might not be able to hear songs clearly, they can still feel the vibrations from instruments and enjoy the atmosphere of live performances. The decision to have signers comes amid a rise of awareness of the deaf community.
Actress Rose Ayling-Ellis last year won the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing contest despite not being able to hear. The 27-year-old’s dances, using vibrations to time her moves, included a performance to Clean Bandit’s Symphony that featured a period of silence as a tribute to the deaf community. It won a British Academy Television Award for TV’s Must-See Moment.
Ms Ayling-Ellis is now backing a bill in Parliament presented by British Labour MP Rosie Cooper to make British Sign Language (BSL) an official language in England.
The current ITV2 series of reality show Love Island features contestant features contestant Natasha Ghouri, who was unable to hear at birth and received a cochlear implant at the age of five.
The British Minister for Disabled People, Chloe Smith, said that “we know many deaf people can experience social isolation and face reduced access to work and education because of barriers in communicating their basic needs and aspirations”.
“Legally recognising BSL will create a more inclusive and accessible society, improving the lives of deaf people and helping public services to get it right,” she added.
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