Sounds of Silent Dreams
27 August 2009
KL Pac

By Jane Kong

Sounds of Silent Dreams featured a drum performance and a brief drama by “DeafBeat,” which consists of 14 deaf members who have undergone many challenges as well as obstacles in order to “hear” the drums and perform to the public.

Prior to the performance, a woman stood in front of the audience and ‘spoke’ to us in sign language signaling to us to switch off our mobile phones.  This was a first for me, being more accustom to verbal instructions.

The night started with a drum performance by 11 hearing-impaired individuals who clearly put in a lot of effort to ensure that their movements were synchronized. I was very impressed with their passion and team work.

A brief drama followed which relates the story of a young boy who falls into a series of silent dreams.  In his dreams, his furniture comes to life and his prized possession, a cuckoo clock, plays mischievous tricks on him.  There were no props in this rather abstract drama.  I had difficulty following the story as there was no conversation amongst the actors and actresses.  The story was told entirely with body language. 

At the end of the drama, there was a short presentation of photos through the projector showing members of the “DeafBeat” practicing. I could see that the members were much close to each other and they had put much effort in practice just to perform well. 

Although I did not really understand the drama, I know one thing was certain – and that was the sincerity and effort that the members of DeafBeat had put in to give the audience a good show.  As a normal person, I felt truly grateful for the five senses that God had giving me.