Exclusive: Deaf Broadway Brings WAITRESS to Lincoln Center

In just five short years, Deaf Broadway has become synonymous with authentically Deaf musical theater. The organization was founded during the 2020 pandemic in response to artistic director Garrett Zuercher's experience with the state of Deaf access to performances of lyrically complex musicals, which too often water down the nuance of the original work’s language and intentions.

Taking up the gauntlet, he and his team began producing American Sign Language interfaces of popular musicals. Eventually, the company began staging the prerecorded audio performance of the musical, presented live by a trained Deaf cast acting their individual parts in ASL.

Following their productions of RENT and Once on This Island, Deaf Broadway returned to Lincoln Center last week with a live staging of the Broadway smash Waitress by Sara Bareilles and Jessie Nelson—offering a more equitable shared evening for hearing and Deaf audiences alike, showcasing a full Deaf Broadway cast performing the music through ASL with direction by Sandra Mae Frank. BroadwayWorld is very excited to bring you highlights from the special performance here.