The Lifetime of Deaf and Deafblind 2 has arrived at FRINGE WORLD 2026, again with its unique mixture of musical performance (complete with Auslan interpretation and backup dancers) and storytelling. This time, it centres around Princess, who’s Deaf and hails from the Philippines. She’s now living in Australia, where she needs to learn an entirely new form of sign language. And Eddie. A car-loving Aussie guy, who was born deaf and is now also blind.

I’m also Deafblind, so I was optimistic for this show. Sadly, I was disappointed. Obviously, as disabled people, we’re not put on this Earth to educate others. But, when a show about disability advertises itself as an insight into the life of Deaf and Deafblind people, that’s exactly what it should do, no matter who the audience is. Unfortunately, this show sadly missed the mark on all fronts.

The musical numbers are clearly heartfelt and full of meaning. But they’re pre-recorded, so if you can’t see the signing or the dance routine, you’re basically just listening to a CD. Then there’s the storytelling, which took the form of a play. This chronicled the gradual decrease in Eddie’s eyesight and Princess’s progress in learning Auslan, but was incredibly dialogue-heavy and extremely hard to follow if you couldn’t see what was happening on the stage. Very ironic, considering that some of the cast are also blind. There were also points where those on stage were speaking but could hardly be heard (there were people signing, though). This could easily be remedied with audio description and microphones.

At one point, my interpretation of the goings on in the play was that Eddie, who still had some sight at this point, was driving the car, while actively engaged in a conversation with Princess, who was also deaf. Can you sign while driving? I don’t know, I don’t drive.
 

I expected the audience to get some insight into the Deaf and/or Deafblind culture. But I didn’t see any of this in the show. I acknowledge I probably missed things because of the above. There were plenty of facts shared. One about signing underwater. But no mention was made about why people stamp their feet or do jazz hands after each act instead of clapping, for example. It seems obvious to those in the know, but something a sighted and/or hearing person may never have encountered.

This show has great intentions and potential. And the performances are good. But the execution needs work.