SASL Newsletter - Spring 2019 Issue Issue 13 - Spring 2019 | Page 4

For comparison, Bragg's rendition can be seen as follows:
What can be said about Bragg's rendition is that it is quite simple and highly familiarized. It is
important to remember that Bragg is a native signer (similar to Bahan). Bragg was born to deaf
parents and graduated from the New York School for the Deaf, informally known as Fanwood, and
went to Gallaudet University. However, Bahan commits himself to ASL literature, while Bragg followed
a different course, so to speak. While it is important to understand that Bragg is one of the founding
members of the National Theatre of the Deaf (known for showcasing the use of ASL to audiences
around the country), he became involved with professional mime as well (see Lessons in Laughter:
The Autobiography of a Deaf Actor (1989) for a review of his life).
Bragg’s stint with mime appears to have played a role in shaping his work that incidentally
removes him from the category of ASL literature. Bragg was, in fact, clear about his distinctive
performance style by calling it Visual Vernacular (VV). According to Nathan-Lerner and Feigel (2009;
as cited in Sutton-Spence & Kaneko, 2016, p. 61), Bragg described:
I developed something that I called VV – it is a form of mime. It is not really a traditional mime
structure. I changed it into a smaller frame size, and utilized film techniques. I used cuts and
edits, close ups and long shots. I started that style, and I called it Visual Vernacular, for lack of
a better term.
What exactly Bragg did with VV in the video clip shown here is beyond the scope of this
editorial, but it is safe to state that this performer kept ASL 'simple' based on the principles of mime.
Mime is expected to be understood by most everyone, deaf or hearing. Language is not a factor for
the audience when a professional mime performer is on stage and performs. The audience can follow
the mimetic performance from beginning to end, for example. Mime is not exclusively language-based
and thus places itself outside the literary realm. According to the autobiographical accounts, Bragg
went to Paris, France and studied mime with Marcel Marceau, one of the foremost experts of mime at
the time to help expand his professional opportunities. Since Bragg was deaf, he was not known for
auditioning and getting speaking roles as a performer. It is understandable that Bragg engaged in
mime around the world. In comparison to Bahan, Bragg belonged to an older generation that was
subject to greater disability-related restrictions. Although Bragg eventually became part of a national
theatrical group that represented a changing society (with the public becoming more receptive to
ASL), he was apparently forever influenced by mime. With an expanding signing audience, Bragg
seemed to embrace the use of his mime skills with ASL. The signing audience obviously found
Bragg's mime-influenced style to be entertaining, and VV can be described as a trademark for Bragg
and his line of work.
(Continue on the next page)
The Power of ASL
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Spring 2019 – Issue 13