Spring Awakening Star Marlee Matlin on a Broadway Debut 30 Years in the Making

In 1986, she made history as both the youngest person to take home a Best Actress Oscar and the only deaf performer to win the award. Marlee Matlin was 21 at the time, and Children of a Lesser God was the starting point of a screen career that has prospered ever since.

After conquering the world of film and television (and having notable roles on shows like Seinfeld and The West Wing), Matlin is adding Broadway to her résumé. She is currently making her Great White Way debut in Michael Arden's revolutionary Deaf West Theater revival of Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater's Tony-winning Spring Awakening, which features a cast comprising hearing and deaf performers.

With Matlin's extensive credits, it's hard not to ask the question, "What took so long?" Just days before the production sees its New York opening night at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Matlin discussed her Broadway debut as well as how pals like Kristin Chenoweth cleared up any trepidation she had and why the musical as a genre is a perfect fit for American Sign Language.

Tell me about your first experience with Spring Awakening.
The first time I saw Spring Awakening was in Los Angeles. It was the Deaf West production being presented in one of the seediest parts of L.A. And yet, the light and talent that came forth from that production erased all the surrounding dread I had, [about] venturing to that part of town! It was truly one of the best things I had ever seen Deaf West do. And the young talent that was present just blew me away. Never in a million years did I think I would get a chance to work with these young actors, but here I am. I am so honored and humbled.

How did you come to join the cast of this production? Were there any hesitations on your part?
They had asked me to join the production when it moved to Beverly Hills, but I was working on Switched at Birth and had a number of family commitments, so I had to pass. Then Switched at Birth wrapped and I was on hiatus, my kids were out of school, and there was an offer to join the show on Broadway. I must admit I was hesitant; I hadn't been onstage in thirty years. But after talking with my family and Broadway pros and dear friends like Henry Winkler and Kristin Chenoweth, I decided to take the leap. And here I am. I couldn't be happier and [more] energized.

Was Broadway a goal for you? What does it mean to finally be making your Broadway debut?
I never thought in a million years I would be on Broadway. First, I've made a comfortable life for myself in film and television for the last thirty years. Secondly, I didn't think there was anything I could do on Broadway, except for revivals of Children of a Lesser God, which I had no interest in (even when Aaron Sorkin suggested I give it a try). But I forgot about Deaf West. They're in the business of creating and presenting theater with plenty of deaf actors and there they were, on Broadway again. And now I'm part of that, and I must say I'm still incredulous that I'm here.

Describe director Michael Arden's concept for this production. How does it integrate deafness and American Sign Language into this world?
Michael and Deaf West have created what I like to call a new visual choreography for the stage, seamlessly incorporating American Sign Language and spoken dialogue together as if theater had always been done that way. It really adds another dimension and you can't take your eyes off of it. Everywhere you look, signs and spoken dialogue have been sewn together so that story points or music that is there is emphasized or highlighted even more strongly. There is not one scene where either hearing or deaf audiences feel left out and instead where both come away understanding everything.

You and Camryn Manheim play the adult female roles in this production. How is that split between the two of you?
I'm playing Fanny Gabor, the mother of Melchior, who is hearing. Every time I sign with my son or husband, Camryn is voicing my lines. I also play Marta's mother and once again Camryn voices for me. There is one scene where I just sign and there are supertitles above me on the stage; that's the scene [with] Frau Bergman…[that] plays like a silent movie and it's very powerful.

Musical theater is an auditory art form. How are the deaf cast members experiencing the music of the show itself?
I think musical theater is both auditory and visual. Watch a singer move across the stage or watch a dancer and their intricate moves. Cast members who have a hearing loss are just another part of the landscape in musical theater when they are given the opportunity to sign in sync with the music. Their hands move and create a visual tableau that gives them the same rush as it does for the hearing actors who sing and dance.

Why is Deaf West so important to both the deaf community and the theater community itself?
It's about theater for everyone. Simple as that. No barriers, no half understanding, or relying on interpreters in a little spotlight on the side of the stage, or subtitles for selected performances. And to do it as creatively, and in such an innovative fashion, as Deaf West did with Big River on Broadway and with Spring Awakening this year is the cherry on top!