Pine Tree Society helps Community Little Theatre bring American Sign Language to the stage
For the first time ever, last fall, Community Little Theatre in Lewiston held two American Sign Language (ASL) interpreted performances of “A New Home.” Pine Tree Society was proud to provide interpreting for these shows and to also work with the director to achieve his vision for including ASL in the show itself.
It all started with a walk.
Composer, writer and director, Paul Caron, walks every day.
“It’s when I have my most creative moments,” he said.
In 2023, he was focused on reworking the original script of “Lewiston: A New Home,” a play for which he wrote the music and lyrics about the history of Lewiston which originally premiered 30 years ago.
“A lot has changed in the city since that premiere,” he recalled. “I wanted to honor the Wabanaki’s as the original people on this land who are still here and still belong and also include the story of the immigrants who started coming to our city in 2000. My intention was to end the show with a song welcoming these new Mainers.”
Then tragedy hit.
In October 2023, the mass shooting in Lewiston forever changed the city.
“Immediately after the shooting we were on lockdown so I couldn’t go for a walk,” he said. “When I walked a couple days later the city felt silent. It was an eerie feeling. I thought of the many shooting victims who were Deaf and how horrific the silence must have been. It was during that walk that the ending of the show changed. I knew the last song would be about that moment.”
“One More Goodbye” was written from the point of view of the victims who perished that day and was performed entirely in ASL.
“The song was about silence,” Paul continued. “And about wishing they’d had one more goodbye. It was a solemn moment and I didn’t think people would applaud.”
To his surprise, at the end of the song, the audience rose to its feet and applauded for two full minutes.
“It was a collective, spontaneous reaction and I realized it was a chance for the community to come together, to breathe, to grieve, to say ‘this is what we’re looking for to heal.’ It blew me away…and it’s going to take months…probably a year…for me to process that moment.”
Actor Brian Pfohl was one of the 18 ASL performers in that scene and his experience was equally profound.
“My daughter Ellie and I were both in the scene and were really nervous about it,” he said. “The shooting is such a raw, current event so we were apprehensive about the song. But we were completely sold when we started working on the ASL with our coach, Roxanne Baker.”
The actors attended rehearsals and worked long hours together and on their own to learn and practice ASL.
“I had very little exposure to ASL before this,” he continued. “I was blown away by the complexity and fluidity of the gestures. We had deep conversations about nuances and ways to interpret the lyrics and add meaning.”
It was an emotionally and physically draining performance and, at the end of the song, when the audience broke into applause, standing on the stage in stillness for those two minutes sent chills through his body.
“It was very difficult to maintain my composure. It’s a moment I will never forget.”
The partnership between Community Little Theatre and Pine Tree Society made this experience possible and helped bring Paul’s vision to life on the stage; creating a once in a lifetime moment for everyone who came out to celebrate the diverse voices of their community.
Photo and Video Credit:
“A New Home” Script, music, lyrics and direction by Paul G. Caron. Orchestration by Colin Britt. Photos by DNA Photography. Video by Jennifer Groover, Valüd Productions. Courtesy of Community Little Theatre.