After last minute announcements and brief thank yous from OC ASL president Bryan Davis, cell phones were turned off, conversations were ended and "CJ Jones Live" was under way.

The show started strong, with Jones stumbling comically on stage, immediately grabbing the attention of the already laughing room. Two hours later, nothing had changed.

"I thought he was great," said OC student Kasee Palmer. "(He was) very funny and super entertaining."

Over the course of the show, Jones' effectiveness seemed to lie with his contrasting ability to connect deeply with his deaf viewers, while exposing his hearing audience to deaf culture. Of course, being extremely expressive, energetic and naturally talented probably didn't hurt either.

Throughout the night Jones communicated with his audience through a dance of motion and sound, sometimes going minutes without speaking, other times breaking down a rap beat or dancing to a blaringly loud rendition of "Part Time Lover."

Jones spoke naturally about losing his hearing to spinal meningitis at age eight, as well as educational trips to Africa, Japan and across the states, all the while managing to simultaneously inform and entertain.

"One of my favorite parts was probably the English to Pigeon to ASL portion," said Palmer, referring to a bit where Jones spoke a random sentence to the audience and then proceeded to show the progression to and difference from Signed English, Pigeon Sign and ASL. "The way he did that was really great," said Palmer.

Another highlight of the evening was a large audience participation number, where, towards the end of the show, Jones suddenly flew off the stage and into the audience in apparent search for volunteer participants.

"The entire time he was down [amongst the crowd] I was thinking 'don't pick me. Don't pick me…" Palmer said. "But, of course, he did." Palmer was one of four audience members to be pulled on stage during the show, all of whom were hearing. "Looking back it was cool, but during the show it was a little embarrassing."

Palmer was just one of many OC and BHS students who attended the performance. "For [ASL 122], you have to go to at least one deaf event per quarter and then write an essay about your experience," said Palmer. "There are a few other events, but this one was obviously the best."

After sufficiently torturing his volunteers, all in good fun of course, Jones wrapped up the night by previewing his latest project, the highly anticipated deaf documentary 'See What I'm Saying.' The film features Jones, as well as three other deaf entertainers, struggling to break barriers and share their stories with the hearing world. Each of the four deaf entertainers seemed unique and compelling, and the two minute preview was met with great enthusiasm by the audience at BHS.

Jones hopes the film, directed and produced by Hilari Scarl, will be "picked up by film festivals soon. It's a great film with great stories," said Jones. The film also follows deaf actor and Julliard instructor Robert DeMayo, as well as TL Forsberg, a talented singer who's been called 'not deaf enough' by some, yet outcast by the hearing community as well, and finally Bob Hiltermann, the drummer for 'Beethoven's Nightmare', the world's only deaf rock band.
USA Today calls the documentary a "powerful and moving film…. This is a community that has been waiting to be heard, and 'See What I'm Saying' allows the viewer to do just that. And you won't soon forget what they've said." For more information about the film or CJ Jones, visit See What I'm Saying: The Deaf Entertainers Documentary | Official Movie Site.

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