"What's this all about? You've always said, Hermia, Hermia."

Sign Language Theater - "A Midsummer Night's Dream," was broadcast by NHK in January 2024.

The Shakespeare comedy was performed by Deaf and hearing actors

so viewers could enjoy it through either Japanese sign language or verbal Japanese.

- The two of you played a prank on Hermia and me.
- You all played this prank to bully me.

"You..."

"You..."

"And you."

"Oh, including me?"

Here, Helena translates Hermia's signs.

A Deaf person would certainly say the subject first.

A team of people with different backgrounds discussed the script

and worked together to create their own piece.

We're taking a behind-the-scenes look at the four-month process that brought the production to life.

It all began in August 2023.

Hello.

Assembled were a unique group of professionals,

including Deaf and hearing actors working in theater and on TV.

Thank you all for coming today.

We are going to stage Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

with Deaf and hearing actors.

We're grateful for your bravery in participating in this unprecedented production.

"Penguins running in the wilderness."

NHK has been broadcasting programs with sign language added.

We've also produced programs featuring Deaf actors performing in sign language.

This time, both Deaf and hearing actors will be performing together in a work involving two languages,

Japanese sign language and verbal Japanese.

Most of the hearing actors had never worked with Deaf actors before.

I can only feel a sense of anticipation. I wonder what will happen next.

It's quite an adventure.

I usually come up with ideas to do this or that to make it interesting.

As an actor I'm always thinking on the set.

But this time, I really don't know what to expect.

I'm asking Sazawa and Hirokawa to supervise the signing and co-direct the production.

These two people, who have long been involved in theater for the Deaf,

will be co-directing along with a hearing director.

Not all Deaf people can understand Japanese subtitles.

Recently, there've been more programs in sign language.

They include light entertainment, and deeply moving pieces that bring people to tears.

But I think this is the first time on TV where we've got a balance

of hearing and Deaf actors. I'm looking forward to it.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

It's based on Shakespeare's comedy, "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

It opens with a fight between a fairy couple in the forest at night that leads to a big commotion.

Hermia and Lysander are eloping, and are being pursued by Demetrius and Helena.

The two men are given a potion that makes anyone fall in love with the first person they see.

All kinds of problems ensue.

The story involves Puck, who ensnares Bottom,

a weaver who dreams of becoming an actor, in mischievous pranks.

"You need to make up your mind

by the next new moon."

The first task was to translate the script into sign language,

which is completely different from verbal Japanese.

Let's start from page 1.

The opening lines are crucial for drawing the viewers into the story.

We'll weaken the play if we start with something like, "Today, we are going to..."

We want Deaf viewers to have the same image as the hearing.

How about using "Starting now..."

That's good.

They have various signs to choose from to express each line.

Today

we are going to

That's a rather common expression.

Not very Shakespearean.

Then,

Starting now

They want to evoke a sophisticated atmosphere with elegant movements.

This is how the script was expressed in sign language:

Starting now

Opening a play

You'll watch

Title is

Shakespeare's

Tragic

Comedy

" "

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Sign language conveys meaning not only by the shape of the hands,

but also things like the speed of hand movement, and the signer's facial expression.

There are all kinds of Deaf people, so each has its own translation.

If you choose which kind will be best for Shakespeare,

you'll be able to produce a better translation.

Ogata Ren is playing Titania, the Queen of the Fairies.

Furutachi Kanji is playing the weaver, Bottom.

The story begins with two characters reciting the opening lines.

I'd like to start from the opening where your lines are delivered simultaneously.

To work together, Deaf and hearing actors must focus on facial and bodily expressions.

That might be key.

At first, they watch each other perform.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

It's Shakespeare's tragic comedy,

"A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Next, everyone watches Furutachi say the lines.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

"It's Shakespeare's tragic comedy, 'A Midsummer Night's Dream.'"

The pace is fast so it's better to sign faster too.

Next, they try doing it together.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

"It's Shakespeare's tragic comedy,

'A Midsummer Night's Dream.'"

The timing of the Japanese and sign language match, but some parts seem a bit unconvincing.

When I say, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," I obviously wait for the sign to match it.

I wonder if that's OK.

I think each person should do it their own way.

To freely do our own lines. And it'll all come together.

Rather than trying to match the timing,

they decide to aim to understand each other's acting and synchronize them naturally.

This is the completed scene they go with.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

"It's Shakespeare's tragic comedy, 'A Midsummer Night's Dream.'"

The rehearsal proceeds.

On this day, Kazumi Akiko plays Demetrius,

and Uchida Chika, his former lover Helena.

The story proceeds in sign language and Japanese.

How exactly do they go about it?

- "Always live strongly and nobly like me."
- "You say, 'Always live strongly and nobly like me.'"

Helena anticipates what Demetrius will say in sign language and explains in verbal Japanese.

- "I don't love you and I can't love you."
- "You want to say you don't love me and you can't love me, yes?"

The dialogue conveys the same content in both sign language and Japanese.

But each actor expresses it naturally as they perform.

This is Oberon, King of the Fairies, played by Satoi Kenta,

and his servant Puck, played by Ezoe Satoshi.

"So you're trying to win back her love."

"Don't be ridiculous. I don't care about Titania's love."

In this scene, the characters are saying different things.

But both the hearing and Deaf viewers can infer them through actors' movements.

I think it's good.

It looks like a translation but it's not.

I don't think this method has ever been tried before.

Furutachi plays the weaver Bottom, an amateur actor learning sign language.

"Didn't the guys who auditioned for the play come?"

It's a difficult role because he has lines in both verbal Japanese and sign language.

He thoroughly practiced his sign language lines by watching videos of scenes performed by Deaf actors.

With limited time to rehearse, he must learn the sign language expressions from scratch.

Furutachi had one request.

At times like this, the two interpreters take turns.

I wonder if I can ask whoever is not involved about the signing.

The Deaf people have responsibility for the sign language,

asking interpreters questions could place a burden on them.

It's not their job.

There're many Deaf actors and people like us here,

so I hope you'll ask us about signing.

Sign language is my language.

When I see hearing people teaching it

or explaining it to someone,

I feel like I'm left out.

I was hesitant at the time,

but since it's an important subject,

I decided to point it out.

I realized that some things hurt them, intentional or not.

I'm starting to understand that.

At the following week's rehearsal...

Furutachi's counterpart, Ren, made a suggestion about how to rehearse.

While everyone is practicing, can I rehearse together with Furutachi?

As their castmates rehearse another scene, the two go over Bottom's lines.

"I work in a textile mill."

You signed like this.

It caught my eye.

I was just trying to imitate the video I got.

Let me look at the video and check that point.

I see.

It's the cloth part.

I thought it meant scissors.

Not scissors. It's the sign for factory.

It's the mill, the place where he works.

A textile mill.

OK.

I've made notes on other things I wanted to ask about.

Until now, he's studied sign language by watching the videos.

But actually talking to her made him understand things more deeply.

Our inability to communicate well led to misunderstandings.

Each of us was left wondering, "What's going on?"

But at those times, she held out an olive branch,

and we were able to find some middle ground, which was great.

It's October. Preparations are moving forward.

The costumes were colorfully flamboyant and roomy to accentuate the charm of the actors' movements.

The actors wore bright gloves of contrasting colors so the signing could be easily seen.

The striking makeup was not bound by traditional gender categories.

The artistry of the work was balanced with the need for the sign language and facial expressions to easily be seen.

If it's difficult to sign,

we can make the mustache a little shorter and thinner.

I want to portray Shakespeare in a festive way.

A one-night love affair ending in a big commotion.

Like everyone's partying at a club.

People around the world have produced this work.

But I wanted to do the flashiest version, and it all started from there.

The rehearsals are also coming to an end.

Ready, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

"We'll dispel the queen's delusions."

"Return to who you were. Look the way you did."

Director Sazawa noticed something in Puck's line in sign language.

Could you replace "return" and "better" with "former" "return" and "better?"

Dear Queen...

In this scene, Oberon, the King of the Fairies, gives Titania an antidote to the love potion

that caused her to fall in love with someone else.

Puck's line —Look the way you did— which echoes the feelings of Oberon,

is not expressed convincingly in sign language.

How about, "Take a fresh look at yourself" in sign language?

Since it means "see the way you were formerly,"

it doesn't make sense to say, "take a fresh look at yourself."

Is it "your heart, open, better"?

There are so many meanings, it's difficult to interpret.

If they translate the script word-for-word into sign language,

it's difficult to convey the abstract Shakespearean expressions.

They consider the meaning of the lines while referring to several Japanese translations.

They each agree to try to come up with better expressions before filming.

When I go home after work, my brain is tired and I run out of steam.

Me too.

I have work to do at home but can't get to it.

Sazawa is a university lecturer who teaches sign language.

When I eat ice cream, it tastes different.

You can differentiate the taste of Hokkaido ice cream?

Wow, really?

After graduating from university,

Sazawa joined a theater group for the Deaf with a history of over 40 years.

She became interested in theater as a child when she saw a play in sign language for the first time.

Sign language was prohibited at my school, so I used my voice to perform.

I could never understand what the others were saying.

When I saw a moving play, I never cried.

I never got the whole picture until my sister performed in sign language.

I was moved to tears. I was in the 6th grade.

I thought it would be wonderful to perform and communicate through sign language.

So my interest in theater was reawakened.

- What's this?
- A watermelon.

In Japan, sign language was once prohibited at schools for the Deaf.

Education focused on lipreading and oral expression.

In 2011, only just recently, the Basic Act for Persons with Disabilities was revised

and sign language was legally recognized as a "language."

Information has increasingly been conveyed through sign language on TV programs.

But there are still few dramas in which Deaf people perform in sign language.

We don't have many opportunities to watch moving programs in sign language.

As a director, I'm grateful to be able to work with others

to think about how to express emotions.

I have to try my best to respond.

It's finally time to start filming.

Discussions about Puck's line, "Look the way you did," have continued right until the last minute.

It'd be better to change the signing of "Take a fresh look at yourself."

What about "true self," "return," and "better"?

I think "once again," "me," and "hope to look" is good.

"Former," "yourself," "change," "better,"

and "once again," "me," "hope to look."

That's it.

That's better.

They choose the expression:

"Hope you look at me once again,"

to reflect Oberon's feelings.

I think the aim is to retrieve the way she looked at Oberon when she was in love with him.

So expressing that nuance and going with, "Hope you look at me once again"

should heighten the viewer's anticipation.

We shouldn't translate the verbal Japanese here word-for-word.

I want an expression that's just as elegant as verbal Japanese.

The story is set in a forest at night.

Filming was conducted on a set built indoors and in an actual forest.

The aim was to create an atmosphere that travels back and forth between fantasy and reality.

"Like the flow of a river..."

It's the first time that Sazawa and Hirokawa have been involved in filming as directors.

This is a take.

Ready, action.

The scene for this day starts with Hermia, left behind in the forest, searching for her lover, Lysander.

"Lysander, where on earth are you?"

Cut.

- Is it OK?
- It's good.

When she says, "Lysander, where are you?" I feel it's better if she doesn't point.

It's a soliloquy, so if she points, it's as if he's right there.

Sazawa is concerned about whether she should stop filming when an expression bothers her.

Is that expression okay?

You can decide.

Let me talk with them.

The performance is really good, but one thing bothers me...

Let's do a retake. One more time.

That's fine. When you're in doubt, it's best to film it again.

Let's do it one more time.

Let us do it again. Cameras are OK.

"Lysander, where on earth are you?"

Cut.

Only after the three directors give their OK do they proceed to the next scene.

I wasn't sure if I could say "no", and stop the play.

So as not to waste time,

I want to be able to stop filming

when I think the scene can't be used.

Shot 4.

Ready, action.

It's the first time for most of the staff to film sign language.

Cut.

B camera lost the signing. Have him adjust that.

They make adjustments so the sign language performance looks attractive.

Many scenes in this production take place at night.

They must make the sign language easy to read in the darkness.

We'll change the color of Puck's gloves. They're hard to pick up.

Ezoe, it's hard to see Puck's gloves so we'll change them.

Thank you. Those are easier to see.

Let's go with them.

On this day, they rehearse the climactic scene in which the four lovers come together.

The two men were in love with Hermia, but suddenly under the spell of the love potion,

both of them proclaim their love for Helena.

This causes Hermia and Helena to quarrel.

"Malicious Helena."

"Me? Malicious?"

"Don't be so mean, Hermia."

It's the crucial scene at the end of the story.

Sorry, one point.

In Hermia's and Helena's lines,

Hermia says, "me," and in Helena's line, she says, "Hermia" instead.

But the content of the lines is the same, right?

Is that all right?

- There's no love between you and me.
- There's no love between you and Hermia after all.

In this scene, Helena speaks nearly the same lines in Japanese as Hermia does in sign language.

- There's no love between you and "Hermia after all."
- There's no love between you and "me."

However, Uchida feels that those lines don't reflect Helena's perspective.

As Uchida points out, in that part, she becomes Hermia's interpreter.

We need to fix that somehow.

After consulting with the scriptwriter,

they decide to change the line to reflect Helena's position

while conveying the same content as sign language.

- There's no love between you and Hermia after all.
- What's this all about? You've always said, Hermia, Hermia.

In the updated line, she stresses her confusion to the two men,

who have a sudden change of heart.

In the final scene, one character is not interpreting for another

or representing the other's view.

What each says happens to overlap with another's speaking.

It's important that each character speak from their own standpoint.

When I read my lines as Helena, there were parts that didn't work.

I couldn't figure it out. That's why I made that suggestion.

Even during breaks, the two go over their lines.

I still don't know which expression to use.

When you decide, I'll...

Imitate?

Yes, imitate.

Before they know it, the actors are having lively conversations without the need for an interpreter.

"Don't be so mean, Hermia."

Today is the final confirmation of the climactic scene.

During the rehearsal, Sazawa, the director,

was concerned about Nasu's performance of Hermia, and gave her repeated advice.

You don't need to match your signs to the hearing actor.

Say your lines with your own emotion. You should check yourself in the video.

What's worrying is the line where Helena and Hermia, now reconciled,

reflect on the life they have shared.

"Even though we appear to have

two bodies, we have one heart."

"These hands,

these eyes,

our words, our movements,

all seem to merge into one."

This is how they first chose to express "these hands, these eyes" in sign language.

However, when she's standing next to Helena, played by Uchida, Hermia seems to be lacking something.

Uchida gives off a mood of reminiscing about growing up together.

I can see that.

She gives off that aura when she's speaking her lines.

Nasu's sign language is excellent, but I don't feel that aura.

From the start, Nasu has worried about how she should express Hermia's emotions.

It's the final rehearsal.

"Even though we appear to have two bodies..."

When Nasu, wondering how to express her emotions,

used different sign language than before, Uchida stopped.

Sorry. I noticed that the signing changed a bit in the middle, so I kind of froze.

Sorry I didn't tell you.

For sign language, "these hands, these eyes" indicate eyes and eyes.

But actually "these eyes" mean the scene that both together are looking at.

If you express it as "these hands, these eyes," the viewer may not understand what is meant.

Will it really be possible to convey Hermia's feelings

by simply expressing them in the same way as in the verbal Japanese?

They decided to discuss this point.

Although the words are different, the feeling is the same.

If we go on like this, we'll just end up saying, "It was fun. We got along."

As Nasu said, "good friends" doesn't mean they're the same.

They acknowledge they have differences.

And it's painful to feel that you and I are different.

It hurts, but they admit it and accept each other.

I hope that this one line expresses that.

Over these four months, they've managed to create a production despite the differences in language and culture.

I've lived feeling that differences

are painful, but even if they are,

I want us to move forward together.

I hope Sazawa will come up with a good expression.

The next morning.

The climactic scene will finally be filmed.

The directors and actors continue to go over Hermia's lines.

We went home yesterday with everything still in the air.

This is a video Sazawa made on the bus.

Based on her suggestions,

Nasu made a video and thought more about expressing Hermia in her own way.

They continued this back and forth until after midnight.

Today, Nasu was supposed to meet us at the train station,

but she joined us on the bus earlier.

We all talked it over and decided on the script.

After I got on the bus,

I had my drink here like this, and then suddenly it spilled all over me.

Sazawa wiped up everything, and while she was doing that, we talked some more.

Everyone, come here.

Let's do it.

This is a take. Ready, action.

How did they choose to express "These hands, these eyes?"

"Even though we appear to have two bodies, we have one heart."

"These hands, these eyes..."

Now, this is expressed using a different movement

—clasping hands and looking at the same direction—

to show their feelings about the days they've spent together.

"These hands, these eyes, our words, our movements,

all seem to merge into one."

Thank you.

The end.

They conveyed the same feelings from their own individual standpoints and in their own language.

We were Deaf actors and hearing actors. But the differences between us were simple.

Differences are just differences. We hope this program conveys that.

I want to talk more with Deaf people.

There's so much I don't know about the culture. I want to learn more about them.

Recognizing that both languages are equal was a real meeting point.

Making a program like this is really meaningful.

Now I can honestly say, "We did it."

I'd like people with different backgrounds to see the program.

I hope more people will try something similar and there will be more opportunities.

"Today, starting now, you shall watch a play."

A screening was held after the broadcast.

The participants included hearing and Deaf viewers in their teens and 20s from different walks of life.

"Why would you tear apart an old friendship

and make fun of your pathetic childhood friend?"

The cast members and the directors were eager to see how the viewers felt about the play.

This was a first for me.

It was really interesting seeing different characters saying lines with the same meaning.

What really impressed me was the color of the gloves.

Hands are very important for sign language. The costumes were very gaudy,

but because of the colorful gloves it was easy to see the signing.

I wasn't born Deaf,

so I did hear and speak.

I understand how both people feel.

Emiri said she enjoyed watching the play on TV with subtitles.

Without the subtitles, I felt a little confused.

I sensed a limit to our respect for

each other's language and culture.

If you try for 100%, there will be limits.

But if we move toward each other from places we don't understand,

our imaginations can work in that process.

I started learning sign language when I saw two Deaf people on the bus having fun signing.

As a Japanese person living in Japan,

I felt I wanted to understand what they were saying.

Aspects of a language you don't understand can also be source of enjoyment.

Not understanding gives off a bad image. But it can lead to opportunities.

And listening to this discussion, I think not understanding is important because

it can make us think and give us some enjoyment.

What does it mean to have ties and live with people different from us?

I think that our differences can help both the other person and myself to grow.

There may be some anguish

but that can be a source of growth.

I've long thought that I can't know myself unless there are differences.

Because humans are all different, new things like this are created,

and our level will continue to rise.

Haruka grew up in a Deaf family.

When she was young, she really didn't feel she was different.

I started meeting hearing people in junior high.

There were different ways to communicate.

Differences scared me,

but I found that it's okay to keep our differences as they are.

For the past 3 years in high school,

I've learned how to have fun and live together with others.

You do you, and I'll do me.

It's not about seeing which side will give in.

You can act your way and I'll act my way.

I've realized the importance of searching for the best way to coexist.

Maybe that's what we did in Midsummer Night's Dream.

By approaching others without knowing much,

listening to lots of people, and talking to others,

we were able to understand each other.

I think this group discussion was really good.

While I'm still in high school,

I want to try the ideas I learned today.

My goal is to become an actor.

I want to look at the performances of hearing actors and of Deaf actors,

and then think about what we can enjoy together.

Deaf characters have often been played by hearing people.

I'll strive to make it possible for

Deaf characters to be played by Deaf actors.