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BRAINERD — American Sign Language students at Central Lakes College will show off their interpreting skills during a series of performances 9-10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6.
Students in the ASL 3 class will perform songs at the Chalberg Theatre for any community members interested in attending.
The performances are free, and instructor Tanya Hoting Mrazek would love to fill the auditorium with spectators.
“You definitely do not have to know sign language,” she said. “Everything will be interpreted, so you’ll be able to understand what’s happening.”
Song choices encompass a variety of genres and artists, ranging from Pink to Shania Twain, as the students will demonstrate their abilities to not only translate the music but communicate on a deeper level.
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“If hearing people go to a concert, they hear highs, lows, breaks, vibrato — those kinds of things,” Hoting Mrazek said. “And so what these students are doing is they’re practicing making all of those things visual so that the deaf and hard of hearing community can have equal access.”
Attendees should be aware the event will be loud.
“We want to make sure that anyone who’s deaf who comes can feel the music, so it will be loud,” Hoting Mrazek said. “And we will have earplugs here, and we also will have balloons, so folks can pick up a balloon if they like in order to help them feel the vibrations.”
Every aspect of the performances is based on making the music visual and challenging those who can hear to look at things in a new way.
THERESA BOURKE may be reached at theresa.bourke@brainerddispatch.com or 218-855-5860. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DispatchTheresa .
