Features 
Friday, April 8, 2005 

During the cultural activities that went along the just concluded national sports competitions for the physically challenged, one thing was clear: The sign language used by the deaf can communicate messages in as clear terms as the spoken word, perhaps even more effectively. 

The deaf presented verses, foreign dances and traditional dances in the Kenyan sign language. Kwale School for the Deaf presented a moving choral verse on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). The strength of the verse lay in the signs, movements and the emphasis on facial expressions.

Kibarani School for the Deaf presented the only percussion dance during the cultural event. The presentation was an instrumental on the world famous song Malaika, consisting of five major instruments - the kayamba, drums, tambuline, marimba and the triangle ring - and other complementary instruments.

Machakos School for the deaf presented a verse on abortion. It was interesting to watch the students express in the sign language the pain a woman goes through during abortion, and the subsequent trauma she undergoes. 

The rhetoric question, "mama, why mama" in elaborate signs, which was also the title of the verse, emotionally appealed to those who seek abortion to take a second thought. The performers used sounds to hammer home their point.

But the most fascinating performance was perhaps the foreign category dance, which involved the deaf performers dancing to music they could not hear. The most sterling performance was by St Angela Girls, Mumias, who performed a royal dance from the United Kingdom. 

The performances were interesting and proved that the physically challenged are as talented as the "normal" people. But it is the time taken to put an item on stage and the dedication of the trainers that was humbling. 

John Barasa, the St Angela team trainer, said it took not less than six months to train a team. "Since the performers cannot hear the sounds and dance to the beats of the rhythm, I have to conduct them using the sign language," Barasa said. 

The performance in the dance category involves the choirmaster standing in front of the team, listening to the music and interpreting the sounds into signs. 

"They actually dance to the signs and facial expressions they read from me," Barasa said. He explained that the deaf also use their bodies to feel the vibrations of the drums in the atmosphere, the rhythm to which they dance.

Percussion choreographer Benjamin Ngumbao explained that the presenters use hearing aids to enable them listen to the instruments. Through the distant sounds they pick from the hearing aids, they are able to play the other instruments uniformly.

According to the director of the Kwale School for the Deaf Ingolo Nandi, the sign language is even more pleasant than the spoken word, as it takes into consideration the aspect of feelings which are usually considered.

"Directing the deaf is challenging but very interesting and I would encourage more directors to venture into directing pieces for the deaf," she said. 

The coordinator of the cultural events Chrispus Baya, said that the standards in the verse category had risen but pointed out that the percussion category was under-represented and urged schools to increase participation.