She does not simply play a Deaf doctor. Sandra Mae Frank is Deaf in real life too, and she brought something to New Amsterdam that television rarely offers: a central character whose deafness is neither a drama nor a curiosity.
For the first time, TV Agora is returning to a series we have already recommended. Yet we could not overlook the woman who appears in New Amsterdam and becomes one of its most compelling and powerful presences.
Dr Elizabeth Wilder is not simply another television character. And Sandra Mae Frank, who plays her, is not pretending to be Deaf. She is Deaf in real life.
She lost her hearing at about the age of three
Sandra Mae Frank was born hearing, but prematurely. At about the age of three, her father realised that she was losing her hearing. She was soon diagnosed with profound deafness. Her parents, who are hearing, learned American Sign Language (ASL) so they could communicate with her.
She does not use a hearing aid and does not rely on spoken language to communicate. The same is true of Dr Wilder in New Amsterdam.
The resemblance ends there, however. In the series, Wilder is at times shown lip-reading. Frank has clarified that she herself does not lip-read.
From a university for Deaf students to Broadway
Frank studied at Gallaudet University in Washington, one of the world’s leading universities for Deaf and hard-of-hearing students. She initially thought she would become a teacher. Theatre, however, changed her course.
Her breakthrough came with Deaf West Theatre’s Spring Awakening. The production moved to Broadway in 2015 and brought Deaf and hearing actors together, incorporating ASL into the action itself.
Frank played Wendla, and her performance became one of the production’s defining points.
New Amsterdam did not “fake” sign language
Her presence in New Amsterdam went beyond casting a Deaf actress. The production worked with Jackie Roth, its Director of Artistic Sign Language, who ensured that the English scripts were accurately rendered in ASL. Frank also had a personal interpreter on set.
Even Ryan Eggold, the show’s Dr Max Goodwin, learned sign language for their scenes together.
Frank first appeared in the fourth season, and the response was strong enough that she was promoted to a main cast member for the fifth and final season.
Read also (in Greek): New Amsterdam (Netflix): Another medical series? I prefer it to House
Then Dr Wilder steals the show
Perhaps most importantly, New Amsterdam does not present Wilder as “the poor Deaf doctor”. She is a doctor, a leader and a strong woman; she falls in love, gets angry, asserts herself and makes mistakes. Her deafness is part of her identity, not her entire identity.
And perhaps that is why Sandra Mae Frank achieves something far more powerful than another television story about “representation”.
Through her gaze, expression, movement and signing, she creates a character who often says more than those who speak.
Yes. Sandra Mae Frank is Deaf in real life and communicates primarily through American Sign Language (ASL).
She was born hearing but began to lose her hearing at a very young age. At about three years old, she was diagnosed with profound deafness.
No. She has explained that she does not rely on lip-reading, even though her character Dr Wilder is shown using it in the series.
Dr Elizabeth Wilder appears in the fourth season. Sandra Mae Frank became a main cast member in the fifth and final season.
Yes. “Deaf” is a widely accepted term, including within the Deaf community. As with any identity, it is best to respect the way an individual describes themselves and to avoid outdated language.
Discover more from Agora Περιοδικό
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
