A triumph for diversity and inclusion
AND Suddenly I Disappear is a celebration of uniqueness and diversity, but also of the unifying experience of being human. It tears down the artificial barriers that corral the “able bodied” from the “disabled” with wit and warmth.
In one of the monologues – delivered by the magnetic Sarah Beer – the absurdity of defining people by what they can’t do is thrown into sharp relief: her character runs a company, has a family, leads a fulfilling life – and when she lists the things she can’t do, they are not disability related.
The audience laughs as she places macramé, algebra and chihuahuas on her “can’t do” list. A collection of fictional monologues created by Kaite O’Reilly based on conversations with disabled people in Wales and Singapore, some address the disabled experience from a Singaporean perspective, raising painful issues of exclusion from a society that values uniformity, and highlighting how often difficulties experienced by people with disabilities stem from the limitations placed on them by others.
The UK is no shining example, however: a wittily cutting monologue highlights the absurdity of taking a person’s mobility vehicle away then penalising them for not being able to get to work, and of a benefits system that cannot take into account the needs of a person whose disability gives them days when they are relatively mobile and days when they are not.
The fact that all this is done with levity is a credit to O’Reilly’s writing: it makes you angry rather than being angry, and is enlightening without preaching.
It’s also beautiful.
It begins with the metaphor of a river and it flows seamlessly through sequences in sign language, audio description and video.
One of the most breathtaking monologues is delivered entirely in sign and movement: a deaf man discovers the joy of self-expression with his hands and body, only to be constrained so often, he finally retreats into himself.
This performance is a reminder that nobody should be silenced by other people’s biases and indifference.
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