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China丨Landmark gala show for impaired fans

CHINADAILY · 公众号 · 时评 · 2025-03-06 11:00

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From hearing the swell of orchestra, to seeing the twirl of pirouette, and understanding the nuance of a playwright's joke — experiencing the thrills of a performance can be a daunting task for vision- and hearing-impaired audience members.

Chen Jing, who has had hearing damage since she was 2-and-a-half years old, knows this frustration well.

"I felt bored though the crowds on TV were roaring with excitement," she said, adding that she tried to sense the atmosphere at a show through people's expressions and body language, sudden changes in lighting and the intensity of the performers' gestures.

Humor is often conveyed through words and timing. But Chen found it hard to grasp the jokes in TV comedy sketches, often leaving her feeling isolated from the joy that filled the family home.

Despite these hurdles, Chen fell in love with dancing in 2005 when she was 8 years old when watching a dance performance aired during the China Media Group Spring Festival Gala. Titled The Thousand-handed Goddess of Mercy , the performance was given by 21 deaf and mute dancers from the China Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe.

Now, Chen, in her late 20s, is a member of the same troupe.

▲ Tai Lihua films a scene for the accessible broadcast in Beijing on Jan 17. Zhang Ximeng/For China Daily

Her dream of conveying the essence of a performance has been realized through her own efforts. As an actor, she uses sign language to communicate the melody and rhythm of music and the meaning of jokes for hearing-impaired viewers.

On Jan 28, she joined the "accessible broadcast" of the Spring Festival Gala hosted by the CMG. She was one of 13 deaf performers from the troupe that staged the special performance for hearing-impaired viewers. It was the first time a full show, catering to both hearing- and vision-impaired people, had been aired.

One of the songs Chen interpreted for the TV broadcast was the Tide Rising Dance , a high-energy song with complex rhythms and fast beats. It was the most challenging performance she has done with sign language, she said.

The rhythm of the traditional Chinese musical instruments, such as the gong and drum, flowed naturally. But Chen said in her early attempts at interpreting the song, the movements were always out of sync with the verses.

To overcome this, she practiced in private. Every night, she held a bass speaker to feel the vibrations of the music, while watching a video of the conductor's lip movements to try and memorize the melody and rhythm.

Eventually, she more clearly sensed the music's tempo — whether it was fast or slow, urgent or calm. "There were no shortcuts, only repeated practice," Chen said.

What made her proud was the positive feedback from the deaf and blind community after the special performance aired on TV. Many commented they felt as if they could "see" and "hear" the magnificent stage and experience the joyful atmosphere of the show.

▲ Tai Lihua guides a hearing-impaired dancer during a rehearsal in Beijing on Dec 23. Zhang Ximeng/For China Daily

Improvised solutions

"When I first heard about the accessible broadcast, I was not entirely sure what to expect," recalled Tai Lihua, president of the China Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe, and a key figure behind the success of the accessible broadcast.

"Initially, I thought my role was only to help with sign-language translations for a few songs. However, as I got more details, I realized that our task was far more extensive — it was the entire gala's sign-language broadcast."

Tai began to lose her hearing at the age of 2 after being given an overdose of an antibiotic to treat a high fever.

In primary school, her teacher brought a drum to class and started to beat it. Tai was thrilled by the rhythmic vibrations that passed over her body.

She fell in love with dancing and started professional dance training at 15.

Tai rose to fame in 2005 as a lead dancer in The Thousand-handed Goddess of Mercy performance during the CMG Spring Festival Gala.

She said the most difficult part of this year's accessible broadcast was expanding the scope of sign language to include sketch comedies, crosstalk performances, and other verbal segments.

"How could we ensure the sign language was accurate but also artistic, capturing the humor and the fast-paced dialogue? We had to find ways to express these nuances beautifully without losing the original meaning," she said.

"In sign language, there are no direct equivalents for every word, so we had to use natural sign language, adjusting the speed and gestures to match the performers' expressions and emotions," she noted.

For years, the China Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe has been participating in the annual gala with artists singing or dancing onstage. "This time, we didn't just create art, but created a world where everyone can participate, no matter their physical challenges," said Tai.

For blind and vision-impaired people, the Spring Festival Gala took on a new dimension thanks to audio descriptions.

As the performances unfolded on screen, narrators provided detailed verbal descriptions of everything; from the grandeur of the stage set, to the intricate movements of the dancers.

The narrators not only described the visuals but also captured the nuances of particular scenes — such as the bright, celebratory lighting, or the delicate swishing sound of the performers' costumes as they twirled.

One blind viewer remarked: "For the first time, I could feel the beauty of the costumes and understand the gestures of the performers. It's not just about hearing the music — it's about feeling part of the story. I was finally able to experience the gala as if I were seeing it with my own eyes."

Dong Lina narrated the dance piece Yi Ren , or The Beautiful Lady , performed by Tan Yuanyuan, the former principal ballerina with the San Francisco Ballet and the artistic director of Suzhou Ballet Theatre.

"The combination of auditory and visual elements provided through these descriptions allowed blind viewers to engage with the event in a way that was previously unimaginable, creating a truly inclusive cultural experience," she said.

Dong herself has inspired many others. She is the first vision-impaired person in China to obtain a master's degree in radio and television broadcasting.

▲ Wang Yabin performs during the recording of the Spring Festival Gala's accessible broadcast program in Beijing on Jan 16. Zhang Ximeng/For China Daily

Poetry and motion

Interpreting a ballet piece for blind or vision-impaired people involves focusing on sensory experiences beyond sight, primarily through auditory and tactile cues, she said. Detailed visual aspects, including the dancers' movements, expressions, choreography, and stage settings, need to be conveyed.

"The goal is to help the listeners visualize the performance," she said, adding that the mood and emotions being conveyed through the dance were also incorporated in her interpretation.

Dancer-choreographer Wang Yabin was an interpreter for the dance piece Xishang Zhitou , or Joy on the Branches , which featured 10 female dancers from the Beijing Dance Academy.

"Since the dance piece evokes an image of a flourishing and festive occasion, like the Spring Festival, my tone had to be very joyful and cheerful," said Wang. "Blind and vision-impaired audiences can hear the music, so I tried to vividly articulate the visual details — like the colors, textures, and movements — allowing the audience to 'see' through words."

▲ Hearing-impaired dancers pose for a group photo on Jan 17. Zhang Ximeng/For China Daily

In 2013, Wang played a blind massage therapist in the Chinese TV drama See Without Looking , adapted from Chinese writer Bi Feiyu's award-winning novel Massage.

To prepare for the role, Wang visited schools for the blind where she observed and learned how they live and work.

"People who are blind and deaf, or vision and hearing impaired, often develop strong independence and resilience because they don't want to burden others," said Wang.

"They may put in extra effort to learn skills and adapt to the world around them."

As a dancer and choreographer, she discovers new ways of expressing movement that resonate not only with able-bodied individuals, but also with those who experience the world through different senses.

In 2021, Wang voiced a special video of a dance film, titled He, for the vision and hearing impaired, creating the possibility of equal enjoyment of art.

"Artists are powerful agents of change, and they hold a unique responsibility to shape experiences that are inclusive and accessible," Wang noted. "When an artist offers services to include disabled individuals, they are not just opening their work to a wider audience — they are expanding their creative horizons. Inclusivity in the arts is not about limiting creativity; it's about enhancing it."

▲ Wang Yabin performs during the recording of the Spring Festival Gala's accessible broadcast program in Beijing on Jan 16. Zhang Ximeng/For China Daily

Bridging the gap

There are other projects helping people with vision and hearing challenges. Guangming Cinema, or bright cinema, a public welfare initiative co-launched by the Communication University of China in 2017, helps vision-impaired people enjoy films through audio descriptions.

Yu Lei, who has been directing the CMG Spring Festival Gala for three years, said allowing impaired people to access the arts can be an empowering experience.

China丨Landmark gala show for impaired fans

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