Ever since it was announced that actor Rose Ayling-Ellis would be participating in this year's Strictly Come Dancing, there was an added sense of intrigue and anticipation, as she made history becoming its first-ever deaf contestant.
Following her Viennese Waltz, in which sign language was incorporated into the routine, a study by CasinoGrounds.com reported a rise in Google searches for 'sign language' up by 488%. British Sign Language Courses also revealed sign-ups for their online free trial programme had risen by a staggering 2844%.
The Eastenders actor, who has played the character of Frankie on the soap since 2020, took to Twitter to thank her supporters, asking people to look for courses taught by deaf tutors and highlighting the differences between Makaton and BSL.
Director for BSL Courses Russell Fowler praised the 26 year-old as a "fantastic ambassador for BSL", who is encouraging people to "unite in a language that is rich in identity and history", with charities hoping that the increased awareness will be maintained beyond the end of the Strictly season.
In addition to raising the profile of BSL, Rose also broke Strictly records following her Halloween tango, receiving a perfect score of 40 and becoming the first to achieve full marks so early into a season.
What seems to have surprised people the most is how Rose has progressed so quickly in the competition and delivered consistent high-scoring performances, without being able to hear the music. In an article on www.limpingchicken.com, which Rose shared on her social media, Rebecca A Withey details how Rose's professional partner Giovanni uses kinaesthetic memory, also known as muscle memory, to teach choreography so that Rose is able to recall the steps without needing an audible cue. Initially, at the beginning of the season, the dancing duo counted steps aloud during their performances so that Rose was able to move in time to the music, however, this detracted from the facial expressions often needed to communicate the dance emotionally, and therefore now Rose performs purely through muscle memory.
The connection between Giovanni and Rose has also been paramount in their ability to execute such captivating numbers, and the natural ease between the two is clear both on and off stage. As Rebecca A Withey comments, this also is partly created by Roses' need to rely on eye contact when lipreading and communicating with those around her, meaning she is able to understand many nonverbal cues based solely on looking into her partners eyes. Above all, what is clearly conveyed in their dancing partnership is that Giovanni is using Roses' deafness to their advantage, relying on abilities she has developed, such as muscle memory and hyper attentiveness to body language, rather than working to compensate for it.
Not only has Rose broken down barriers and challenged misconceptions that "deaf people can't dance" or "deaf people can't enjoy music", but she has also directly advocated for D/deaf fans of the show which has led to groundbreaking change. Following the launch of the show, some fans took to Twitter to express their frustration that Roses' BSL interpreter was not made visible for viewers at home, leaving them to continue to rely on subtitles and making the show less accessible. After speaking to BBC bosses, Rose conveyed these concerns, adding how she used to find the show "unbearable" to watch being reliant on subtitles, ultimately leading to them agreeing to provide an option for BSL interpretation, once the programme is uploaded to iPlayer.
Thanks to Roses' participation on Strictly 2021 already having created so much change, the power of positive media representation, and increased visibility of the D/deaf community has never been clearer. Not only do fans feel more included in the show, but with the community being visible to the wider public, there is a better opportunity for connection and understanding, helping to combat social isolation.
With 6 shows left to go, all we can say to Rose and Giovanni is... keep dancing!
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