Deaf Culture and Talchum Cross Worlds to Learn From Each Other

Photo by “Becoming Dance, Becoming Speech” Poster

The early winter air of Namsan settles thinly over the hanok roof, holding the last lingering light of the city. As you descend the stairs of the Seoul Namsan Gugakdang, the Chimsangwon, where natural light penetrates all the way to the floor, slowly leads the audience into the world of the performance. In this quiet space, a new form of stage will soon unfold, combining Korean Sign Language, body movements, and the flow of Talchum (Mask Dance Drama). True to its title, ‘Becoming Dance, Becoming Speech,’ the work shifts the way we view language to a slightly different dimension.

The Cheonhajaeil Tal Gongjakso (World's Best Talchum Workshop) and The People Who Show Sound have collaborated, crossing each other's domains for many years. The artists, who primarily work with Talchum, have accumulated experience and understanding of Deaf culture, taking time to re-examine the meaning of movement. The team rooted in Deaf culture and Deaf identity newly interpreted the aesthetic structure of the Talchum movements. The time shared by the two organizations is engraved in their own ways throughout the work's flow.

Photo by ‘Becoming Dance, Becoming Speech’ performance

‘Becoming Dance, Becoming Speech’ does not treat Sign Language, Korean, and movement as separate elements but weaves them into a communicative structure. Elements like the direction of the fingertips, breath, and eye level harmonize with the music to create a visual rhythm. Moving away from the auditory-centric stage, a visual-auditory balance is created, giving the audience an experience that goes beyond familiar senses. Sign Language acts as a crucial component of the performance, adding a new texture to the entire movement.

The flow presented on stage is closer to a direct presence than to a theoretical explanation. The movement of the hands connects with the lines of the body, and that flow, in turn, forms the rhythm and breath of the music. Meaning is not defined by words or sentences; rather, it naturally emerges as different layers of sensation are carefully stacked. The audience follows the process of the entire movement expanding into a single language, rather than distinguishing between speech and dance.

The work is difficult to understand solely within the category of a barrier-free performance. Instead of adding elements for accessibility, different modes of expression are integrated in a way that forms the structure of the performance. Scenes that can be understood by both Deaf and hearing audiences continue, creating an experience that transcends the difference in senses. This composition is a practical example for those who have contemplated the expansion of expression in performing arts.

Undergoing several processes since its premiere, the two organizations have continued their exploration to bring this stage to life. The collaboration became a process of understanding each other's gestures and cultural backgrounds, not just technical adjustment, and over that time, the performance format gained further balance. This flow demonstrates what joint creation means and how the accumulation of time transforms a work.

The post-performance conversation with the audience serves to bridge the gap between the stage and daily life. The linguistic composition, background of the movements, and the joint creative process used in the work are shared with the audience, extending the performance. It is a moment when the boundary between art and the audience softens. This shows that the methods of communication surrounding the work can continue outside the stage.

The Namsan Gugakdang space plays a significant role in forming the atmosphere of the work. The lines of the hanok, the reverberation of the underground performance hall, and the structure of the sunken garden where natural light penetrates create an environment where traditional aesthetics and contemporary sensibility are harmonized. The audience already experiences a part of the performance on their journey to the stage. The aesthetic characteristics of the space are naturally connected to the sensory flow of the work.

In recent years, the Seoul Namsan Gugakdang has shown a clear direction: embracing the experiments of contemporary artists while being based on tradition. ‘Becoming Dance, Becoming Speech’ is a work that demonstrates the continuation of this path. Diverse axes — tradition and contemporaneity, disability arts and Talchum, language and movement — are harmoniously combined on one stage.

Performing arts is the genre that most sensitively captures the sensibility of the times. This work naturally reflects the current trend of changing language structures and modes of expression. This stage, created together by Deaf and hearing people, demonstrates how diverse methods of communication can be and how art can expand those possibilities.

In December at Namsan, the audience will encounter senses opened in a slightly different direction. Following the stage where the movement of hands becomes speech, and the flow of speech leads back to dance, one is newly reminded that language does not remain solely within the realm of sound. Amidst the lighting and movement spreading through the performance hall, one is led to reconsider the breadth of communication.

Reported by News Culture [e-mail]