With his tremendous generosity, Ty (Tyrone) agreed to respond to several questions regarding his performance and experience in Big River so that Japanese audiences will gain more insights about the show.

1. You said that you wanted to become a writer, not an actor. So you didn't have any acting experience prior to Big River? Did you do any research before and after the audition?

I did have dreams of becoming a published author, or of a newspaper reporter, when I graduated from Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. I never even took any theater classes! Things began to change when I auditioned for a small theatrical group that did skits and song numbers, and I became involved in a major professional theatrical production locally at Arena Stage.

From there, I applied to and was accepted at Deaf West Theatre's Professional Summer School for Actors in Los Angeles, and it was then that I decided I wanted to pursue the theatrical arts as a career. It was at the end of the summer program that I learned that auditions were being held for Big River, and I auditioned, if only out of hope of somehow being involved in Deaf West's cutting-edge theatrical work. Little did I know I would end up performing on Broadway or doing a tour across the United States and here in Tokyo!

2. How was your audition for Huck's role?

I remember being terribly nervous--I selected a monologue from "Long Day's Journey Into Night" for a character that was completely wrong for me, but was very visually descriptive, and I went into it, completely faltering, but committed to seeing it through. About halfway through my monologue, the director, Jeff Calhoun, stopped me. "I immediately thought, "Great, I've ruined it!"

But Jeff threw me some questions, and then asked me if I could read some lines and come back in a few days for callbacks. I was ecstatic! I studied those lines with fervor over that weekend that I spent in San Diego, and came back to callbacks to pair up with other actors (for the roles of Pap, Jim, and Mary Jane), and found myself competing neck and neck with fellow Big River castmate Ryan Schlecht. They offered me the role, and it took me a few seconds to realize that I had won the role! I did a little leap of joy at that!

3. How do you see Huck's character? How are you performing him on stage?

Initially, I was terrified about doing justice to Huck's character-he was probably the most famous character in all of American Literature! Everyone had their own conceptions of what Huck was like, how he looked, how he acted, spoke, even ate!

It was during the rehearsal process that it hit me--Huck was all about the struggle between the mind and what it's told is right, and the heart, and what it feels is right. And that's what I drove home every time I played Huck, because that was the only way I could do the character justice--the rest was just details.

4. Would you say between Broadway run and the national tour production, your performance as Huck has been changed? how?

It's been such a blessing to perform the show for four incarnations over the last three years. I'm sure the same goes for the four other actors currently on tour from the original production at Deaf West Theatre (Kotsur, van der Schyff, Schlecht, Keller).

I would say that initially, with my inexperience as an actor, I painted very broad strokes portraying Huck onstage. As time went by, my portrayal became more refined, my grasp of stage ASL more complete, and my desire to connect and share my experience, both as Huck and the actor being so happy to be a part of a special production, became more intense. It's been a real lesson in acting for me, and such a blessing to revisit the show anew each time it has been staged, and I hope to continue working on my craft.

5. What are the most challenging scene and/or number in the show? Have you performed with Dan's understudy? How was it?

The more challenging aspects of the show are the momentous occasions where Huck undergoes a transformation of his perception of the world around him and his friendship with Jim. It's very challenging to portray the experience of ignorance of race into enlightenment anew each time. Also, I have learned how to "launch" into song, as this is not a device we use in normal, everyday life... I've learned how to make it as natural as I can, and hope to become more skilled at it.

6. Could you tell us your impression of the opening night in Tokyo? Were Japanese audiences'responses different or the same compared to performing in U.S.?

I have to say that it took some getting used to performing here in Tokyo. Audiences are awfully quiet! Throughout the show, I'd built in some beats where I would expect some laughter from the audience, but either Japanese audiences are enraptured or so respectful as to not disturb the performance. But at the very end, they're applauding and cheering as loud as can be. What was fantastic about opening night was that I heard that Princess Kiko was in attendance, and visibly moved by the performance!

7. What would you like to do while you are in Tokyo?

Besides sample ever more Japanese cuisine??? I'm not sure what's left! Here in Tokyo, I've done karaoke for the first time, tried some new foods (including tongue, stomach, lung, intestine, natto, but not yet fugu), seen some pretty interesting sights... One thing I have yet to see is the famed Parasite Museum... I think I'll wait to ask someone out on a date for that.

8. A lot of your fans want to communicate with you after the show (like at the stage door) but they hesitate because they don't know ASL. What is the best way to communicate with you in person?

Just communicate. The very desire to communicate is important, and a little inventiveness will open the doors. Some examples include writing, gesturing, speaking slowly and clearly (but not loudly! that's annoying), or use of an interpreter. What impresses me the most is that many people have gone out of their way to learn a few signs and having them sign to me is such a joy to see.

9. Do you have any message to Japanese audience?

I truly hope that as many people see this show as is possible! I know it's a hard sell--a musical with deaf people and sign language in it!--but it's a special event to experience, and I truly wish that every person in the world could see it. I also hope that this show in some way transforms perceptions of what the deaf can or cannot do, because the there is so much focus on our disability, and not on our abilitiy. We have experiences no different than anyone else, even if people think we're somehow "broken" because we cannot or choose not to hear. We are also proud of our language, which we invite everyone to take part in, regardless of whether or not they have the ability to produce sound out of their mouths. The show blurs the line between who's deaf and who's hearing--you sometimes cannot really tell the difference, and that's sometimes what I think the whole point of the show is!

Ty, thank you SO MUCH for taking your time to answer to these questions in detail! I'll be your date for PARASITE MUSEUM if you dare to go (LOL). I'm looking forward to meeting you in Sacramento!



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