For the first time since its inaugural event in 1996, DeaFestival-Kentucky will return to Danville for its 14th biennial event on the campus of Centre College at the Norton Center for the Arts. The state's only daylong celebration of deaf and hard of hearing art, language and culture will be held in conjunction with the Kentucky School for the Deaf's (KSD) 200th anniversary on Sept. 3 during Labor Day weekend, and will feature a job fair.
The free festival is open to the public and will tout the circus theme "The Greatest Deaf Show on Earth!", based on the movie The Greatest Show on Earth. Doors will open at 9:45 a.m. EDT.
DeaFestival-Kentucky has drawn thousands of visitors since its inception and the 2022 event is slated to be the most well attended with nationally renowned, talented American Sign Language (ASL) artists Sandra Mae Frank, WaWa Snipe and Sean Forbes headlining the performances. Frank is an acclaimed deaf actress from NBC's "New Amsterdam" and a graduate of KSD. Snipe is a trailblazer in the hip-hop world and developed his own niche: Dip-Hop, or what he calls Hip-Hop through deaf eyes. Forbes is also a long-time deaf rap artist. All three performed at this year's Super Bowl LVI and will be part of the more than 50 artists on hand that day.
"Coming home to Danville, DeaFestival 2022 has the opportunity to bring the community together and instill a sense of community pride and knowledge of the history in their own backdoor," said Virginia Moore, executive director for the Kentucky Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (KCDHH). "With the thousands of visitors we are expecting to attend, DeaFestival will offer a host of economic and social benefits to the community."
New this year is the Julie Beth Hayden Career Day, a job fair that will be held on Sept. 3 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., outside the Norton Center. The job fair is a joint effort between DeaFestival and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, which is in the Kentucky Career Center. Over 30 companies are slated to host interviews. ASL interpreters will be on hand to assist interviewees. Appointments are not required. Hayden, born deaf from a rare congenital heart condition, served as a rehabilitation counselor for the deaf and passed away in 2020. The Julie Beth Hayden Foundation was created to honor and continue her legacy of serving the deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind individuals.
As part of the Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet (ELC), KCDHH produces DeaFestival to educate the public, parents, educators and employers about the true abilities of participants, who provide successful role models for younger people and their families. There will be more than 50 visual and performing artists on two main stages (Hands Across the World Children's production, Spotlights Main Stage and Jam Tent's Concert).
This 14th biennial DeaFestival is hosted by the Knowledge Center on Deafness (KCD) and KCDHH. KCDHH serves over 700,000 Kentuckians who have a hearing loss. Visit the KCDHH website, www.kcdhh@ky.gov, like us on Facebook at DeaFestival-Kentucky 2022, or follow us on Twitter at @DeaFestivalKY, and Instagram at kycommdeafhoh.
For more information, please contact Moore at 502-573-2604.
Categories: Kentucky, Rural Lifestyle