This past Saturday was the Universities ASL performance group IMAGE (Integrating Music and American sign language for Genuine Entertainment) show. These ladies have been working all year for this show and it finally happened. The amount of people who attended the show was said to be the biggest outcome in years! Those involved in the group consist mostly of ASL interpreting majors but also some who are Deaf Education and communication studies as well.

      The group takes a variety of songs and translates it into ASL. For the show they signed 16 songs.  Some were signed as a whole group while others were signed in smaller groups. The songs chosen spoke about all types of different topics. The song “Rolling in the Deep” written by Adele and signed in the show by IMAGE members Jackie Bristel and Jessica Levy related to revenge and heartbreak. Meanwhile, the song “My Wish”, written by Rascal Flatts and signed by IMAGE members Kristen Pepe and Hailey Sweeney relates to a father’s hopes and dreams for his daughter. There were many more songs included in the set as well. The group was sure to include fun and energetic songs into the mix that made even the audience dance in their seats.
At the end of the show, the members had their three seniors Emily Gowin, Alyssa Lardi, and Mercedes Brandi perform their last song as their final good-bye. They signed the song “See you again” by Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth. It was at this time where the entire room was crying due to the sadness of goodbyes yet a feeling of completeness.  The three ladies began their song sitting trying their best to hold in their emotions. However, at the end when they stood up and put their gowns on, tears fell from their cheeks. Everyone felt the warmth of their signs. It made it all real for those seniors in the audience that graduation is near and even though they were excited to leave, it’s sad to leave everyone you grew up with in the 4 years you’ve been here.

     To say the IMAGE show was a success is an understatement.  These ladies put their heart out onto the stage and we all saw it. If you are possibly interested in trying out for next semester, the dates for audition will be posted outside of Navy Room 10. You can also follow them on Instagram @bloomsburgimage and Facebook at Bloomsburg Image. If you missed this year’s show, make sure you mark your calendars for next year!