What happened to National Theatre of the Deaf?

I was surprised that the National Theatre of the Deaf was not included in the article, “A theater’s history and its impact: Lyman Allyn hosts exhibition about the O’Neill Center” (Aug. 8), since it was the home base of National Theatre of the Deaf from 1967 to 1983. During those years, under the brilliant direction of David Hayes, the company combined American Sign Language with spoken language to create one-of-a-kind theatre, for both hearing and deaf audiences. National Theatre of the Deaf and the Little Theatre of the Deaf have performed in all 50 states, and 33 countries on each continent. As one of two hearing students, I attended National Theatre of the Deaf’s Summer School and it opened my mind to unusual, original and personal ways of presenting theatre. If National Theatre of the Deaf’s existence, Tony Award winning performance, national, and international acclaim is also not recorded in the Lyman Allyn Exhibit, it is indeed more than an oversight. 

Sara Ingram

Deep River