In The Singer, music travels through hands, floors, bodies and instruments.
During a scene described by The Guardian, Joe removes his shoes so that he can feel the rhythm beneath his feet. He uses a Subpac, a wearable device that transmits low frequencies through the body, and places his hand on a guitar as it is played.
Joe is a Deaf artist who writes and performs through British Sign Language. His relationship with music is the foundation upon which the production builds.
Playing at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre until 30 August, The Singer brings together BSL, spoken English, captions and live music in a piece of gig theatre about creativity, friendship and the pressure to be recognised by an industry that does not always understand difference.
Written and directed by Cora Bissett, the production grew from a short film co-written by Bissett and Jamie Rea, the Deaf actor playing Joe. Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall has written its original music and lyrics.
Every performance is presented in BSL and spoken English with captions. Each language belongs within the work rather than being reserved for a separate version of it.
A partnership in more than one language
At the centre of the story is the collaboration between Joe and Andy, a musician hoping to rebuild his career. They create songs together while navigating ambition, prejudice and the demands of the music industry.
Their partnership allows the production to explore music as something larger than audible sound. Rhythm can be felt. Lyrics can be signed. Emotion can be carried through facial expression and movement as well as through a singing voice.
At one point, the audience is taught to sign the chorus of a song called Find My Feet. The house lights come up and the distinction between performer and spectator briefly softens. BSL becomes a shared part of the performance.
The creative team reflects the same collaborative approach. Alongside Rea and Bissett, the production includes BSL associate director Benedetta Zanetti, BSL consultant Clare Canton and creative captioner Daniel Hughes. Their work helps give the production its visual rhythm and performance language.
Captions have position, timing and character. Signed performance has its own grammar and physical expression. Vibration creates a relationship between sound and the body. Together, these elements give the music more dimensions.
There is no single way to listen
People experience sound differently. Music may arrive through residual hearing, hearing aids, cochlear implants, visual movement, signed performance or physical vibration. Some people identify culturally and linguistically as Deaf, while others describe themselves as deaf or hard of hearing. Those experiences cannot be reduced to one account.
My hearing aids connect to an app on my phone through Bluetooth. I can adjust how I receive sound and stream audio directly into my ears. That connection is useful, but it does not recreate somebody else’s hearing or remove the ways my surroundings affect what I understand.
I do not share Joe’s relationship with BSL, and my experience cannot represent that of a Deaf BSL user. It has, however, made me conscious that listening is shaped by individual bodies, available technology and the environment around us.
The Singer gives those differences room to coexist. Music remains music when it is received through vibration or expressed through signs. It continues to carry rhythm, emotion and connection between people.
Tunstall’s contribution is informed by her own connection to deafness. She has spoken about losing the hearing in her left ear and growing up with a profoundly deaf younger brother. When announcing the production, she said its story resonated with her personal experiences and her life in music.
Her songs are joined by the work of Deaf artists who bring their own language and cultural knowledge to the stage. The production is shaped by several perspectives, with each contributing to the finished work.
A wider celebration of Deaf culture
The Edinburgh run comes during a rich month for Deaf culture in the city.
The 2026 Edinburgh Deaf Festival took place from 7 to 16 August, presenting more than 80 performances and events across ten days. Its programme celebrated Deaf culture, language and heritage while creating space for Deaf artists and audiences to meet on their own terms.
The Singer continues that presence through the remainder of August before touring Scotland in September, with performances scheduled in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Dundee.
It is a new Scottish theatrical work with original music, a distinctive performance language and Deaf creative leadership. Like any production, it can still be assessed on its artistic merits. The Guardian praised its warmth, performances and music while finding its central story comparatively simple.
That critical engagement matters. Deaf-led and accessible work deserves to be discussed as art: praised for what succeeds, questioned where it falters and considered without being reduced to its social importance.
The production also offers other theatre-makers a generous example of what becomes possible when access practitioners and Deaf artists are involved throughout the creative process. It does not prescribe a single model for every performance. Instead, it expands the range of creative choices available.
The Singer gives Deaf creativity the room, resources and stage it deserves. It allows a song to travel across voices, hands and bodies until the audience can hear it, watch it and feel it together.
See The Singer
The Singer is playing at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh until 30 August 2026 before touring to Aberdeen, Glasgow and Dundee in September.
View dates and book through the Traverse Theatre
Learn more about Deaf artist and co-creator Jamie Rea
Sources Dundee Rep: Cast announced for The Singer Solar Bear: The Singer and Scottish tour dates Edinburgh Deaf Festival 2026 The Guardian: The Singer review