Disabling privilege: Further reflections on Deaf West’s Big River

Drawing on observations of Michael McElroy, Tyrone Giordano and Ed Waterstreet I consider the difficult role of Jim in Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which involves reliving the institution of slavery, onstage, night after night. What made it possible and rewarding to play this role, for Michael McElroy, was the Deaf West production, which involved both hearing and deaf actors, the former signing and the latter voiced. I consider how the performance difficulties, the need to connect with deaf performers, and the thematic interweaving of the story with its performance mode, among other factors, contributed to a rich experience that reflects and intensifies fundamental aspects of musical theatre.