'PIPPIN: IN A NEW LIGHT' - Act 1: Ambition

Editor’s note: This is the first story in a behind-the-scenes series of the Garden Theatre’s production of “Pippin” — the theater’s most ambitious project yet — and its commitment to education and raising awareness for the deaf community.

Everything is quiet.

The silence buzzes inside the four Mediterranean revival-style walls of the Garden Theatre. But, it’s not sound. It’s joy, sorrow, envy, anger, fear, inspiration, awe, shame, gratitude, love, envy, passion, pain.

It’s emotion. It’s feeling.

And it’s that beyond-the-senses awareness that gives those in the deaf community a unique identity. The lack of hearing is not a deficiency. Rather, it’s a characteristic that contributes to a person’s individuality.

The Garden Theatre in downtown Winter Garden is celebrating this individuality and encouraging the community to share the love with its recent announcement of its second show in the 2024-25 Broadway on Plant Series: “Pippin.”

While the musically mesmerizing show will portray the same beloved story that has been shared many times over its more than 50 years, the Garden Theatre is focusing on accessibility and the talented contributions of deaf actors and creatives for audiences to experience the duality of the hearing and non-hearing world.

The show will be directed by the Garden Theatre’s producing artistic director, Rob Winn Anderson. 

“Our approach to ‘Pippin’ emphasizes the universal search for identity and authenticity in a world dominated by conformity,” he said. “It has required a great deal of research and the assemblage of a team of professionals early in the process to talk through every aspect of the show, from auditions to how the actors and crew members would be trained in American Sign Language communication, the translation of the entire show into an artistic representation of ASL, choreography and much more. … I am most excited for our audiences to see ‘Pippin’ in a way they have never seen before — in a way that it has never been seen before anywhere. We are digging beyond the incredible music and choreography that most people think of when they think of ‘Pippin’ to really explore the mind of a troubled young man who is desperate to find his way in the world.”

THE IDEA

“Pippin” will be a multilingual production integrating ASL, English and a rich visual language. 

The production will highlight the energy and retrospective fantasy of “Pippin” while also introducing the unique artistry of deaf performers and sign language. 

Through carefully crafted portrayals, it is the theater’s intention to challenge stereotypes and illuminate the lived experiences of deaf individuals — a community often overlooked and misunderstood.

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Anderson said he got the idea after years of watching the ASL interpreters at Walt Disney World. 

“They were always a show unto themselves, and they captivated me,” he said. “I had studied ASL in college and wanted to bring the language to the stage. When I was considering the shows for my first season back at the Garden Theatre, I thought of ‘Pippin,’ and it hit me that it would be a wonderful project to highlight deaf actors and ASL. The story of ‘Pippin,’ who is searching for his place in a world where he is different from those around him, seemed like a perfect vehicle to explore what it means to be deaf.”

Anderson said this type of accessibility is not as common as it should be.

“There is a great deal of conversation around diversity, equity and inclusion, and I find that when it is discussed rarely is the accessibility side of DEIA mentioned,” he said. “The conversation is usually very narrowly focused. For me, you cannot have a real conversation around DEIA if you do not include the full spectrum of what the term is about. Exclusion is not diverse. Exclusion is not equitable. Exclusion is not inclusive.

“Bringing deaf actors, or any actor who has a disability, into a production is a huge investment — not just financially, but also from a commitment, support and education standpoint,” he said. “Too many theaters shy away from the idea because of the work it takes to do this correctly and safely — which we are doing.”

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THE TEAM

Michelle Mary Schaefer will serve as the director of artistic sign language, also known as the DASL. She is an actor, creator, screenwriter, director, producer and consultant who is deaf. Her production company, Annabelle Louise Productions, pursues stories that are authentic and where representation matters.

Schaefer is responsible for the translation of the show’s book and lyrics into ASL — but in an artistic way that fits a theater production and is not strictly interpretation. 

Schaefer said there are many challenges in her specific role when it comes to crafting “Pippin.”

“One is to translate the script from English to ASL, which both languages have their grammar and rules,” she said. “Second is to teach/work with hearing actors who are not fluent in ASL their signed lines and to (simultaneously communicate) two languages at the same time. SimCom is strongly not encouraged, yet in some situations it happens, and it takes a true fluent ASL user to do that, and not many folks can.  That will be a challenge in ‘Pippin’ — to see the journey of the actors learning everything in order to bring the production alive.”

Brian Truitt is the primary interpreter for the project, and he has assembled a team of interpreters who will work with the rest of the creative team and actors during the pre-production, rehearsals and performances.

“I have worked with deaf performers and deaf production groups in the past,” he said. “It is always a challenging, yet rewarding, experience to facilitate communication between the deaf and hearing communities.”

Cindy Wilson is the show’s choreographer. She will take the ASL translation and work it into the choreography. 

The creative team also includes: Chris E. Endsley, music director; Nicole Perry, intimacy director; Mihai Ciupe, scenic designer; J. Ethan Henry, costume designer; Mark Adam Rampmeyer, hair and makeup designer; Anthony Narciso, audio designer; George Jackson, lighting designer; Dakota Bothun, props designer; Amber Larkin, video designer; Michelle Shea, stage manager; and Emma Milhollin, assistant stage manager.

“I have learned something new every day since beginning this project, and I love to learn and grow,” Anderson said. “That’s what makes theater exciting for me, and the team we have assembled is second to none. The team and the staff at the Garden are all-in. Their excitement and dedication to what we are doing is awe inspiring. Many of the staff have begun taking sign language lessons.”

THE PLAYERS

“Pippin” will bring a new, accessible experience to audiences with the intentional casting of deaf actors in starring roles.

The total number of actors in the cast is 16, which includes 14 hearing actors and two deaf actors. All cast members will sign in the show. 

Deaf actor Lane Breimhorst will portray Pippin as a deaf character, and shadow actor Edwin J. Perez II will voice Pippin for hearing audiences. 

The leading player will be portrayed by two actors — one representing the hearing world around Pippin and the other representing his non-hearing world.

Treshelle Edmond, diagnosed with profound hearing loss at 18 months, will portray the leading player. 

Representing the hearing world, Remi Veronica also will portray the leading player. 

Pippin also features Christopher Russell as Charlemagne, Pippin’s demanding father and King of the Holy Roman Empire; Claudio Medina Jr. as Lewis, Pippin’s half brother; Tay Anderson as Fastrada, Pippin’s conniving stepmother; Megan Orlowski as Berthe, Pippin’s saucy grandmother; Samm Carroll as Catherine, a beautiful widow and mother; and Callahan Taylor as Theo, Catherine’s son. 

Rounding out the cast are Katie Davis, Samuel Spare, Aspen Thompson, Cameron Jaye, Kate Mobley and Maiky Ayala.