Excelsior student celebrates sign language in show choir performances

MARION — Excelsior Middle School seventh-grader Erica Allen is shedding light on American Sign Language one show choir performance at a time.

Erica, 13, brings “something special” through her voice to the school’s show choir Double Time, but also through her sign language solos, said Andy Cutler, the show choir director and music teacher at Excelsior Middle School in the Linn-Mar Community School District.

Part way through their season — which culminated in their final competition at Xavier High School over the weekend — a parent of another student in Double Time suggested Erica sign during the performance.

Erica — who is hearing — is fluent in American Sign Language because her parents are both deaf and her sister, a student at Linn-Mar High School, is hard of hearing.

“It adds a lot to the message of the show,” Erica said.

Adding sign language to the performance “got everyone more hyped up because they saw this really cool thing I was doing, and all my friends in the audience were cheering,” Erica said.

Erica signs during the song “Alone,” by Armin van Buuren. One of her solos is during the chorus, which goes like this: “Are we alone? I need something to believe in. Tell me, are we alone? Where is the love? Where is the feeling? Is anybody out there? Is anyone listening? Is anyone left in this whole world? Or are we alone?”

It’s a sad song, but Cutler said as the choir ends their performance, it’s almost like they are asking the audience a question.

“We know the answer,” Cutler said. “No, we’re not alone, but we want to leave the audience pondering.”

Erica said she used to be bullied at school for knowing sign language. “People would come up to me and move their hands around and ask, ‘What am I saying?’”

“I remember crying in my room one day with my mom hugging me because of the bullying. Now, I’m signing in front of an audience. It shows people the beauty of it,” Erica said.

Erica said she hopes to incorporate sign language into whatever career she chooses someday. “I’ve had dreams of becoming an interpreter. I wanted to become a teacher. I wanted to work with animals for a time. I would love to use my ASL as a job.”

“It’s like a superpower you have,” Cutler said to Erica.

Erica was initially hesitant to audition for show choir last fall. Erica has Tourette’s Syndrome, a nervous system disorder that involves repetitive movements or unwanted sounds referred to as “tics” that can’t be easily controlled.

“I was scared because — a lot of people don’t know this about me anymore because I’ve been getting better with medication — but I have Tourette’s Syndrome, and when I was first thinking of auditioning, I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to get in because of my Tourettes. But obviously that’s not a big deal anymore. When I’m performing, I’m really confident and everything just washes away,” Erica said.

Cutler said Erica is one of the “most fun dancers to watch,” even when she is not signing because of “the expression on her face.”

Facial expressions are an essential part of sign language that enhances meaning and increases the emotion expressed. “She’s captivating because of how expressive she is,” he said.

Cutler said working with Erica is reinforcing how he can use student’s strengths in their performances.

“I’m really glad Erica stepped up and delivered consistently such a great performance each time. She’s rocking it,” he said.

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