Enterprising Preston student sets up consultancy to work with deaf actors and act as freelance interpreter

Life is one big drama for Rebecca Cooney - and that’s just how she likes it.
Rebecca CooneyRebecca Cooney
Rebecca Cooney

The 24 year old has combined her love of theatre with her work with deaf people to earn herself a first class degree.

Rebecca started working as a volunteer with the hearing impaired as a 17 -year-old in her native Belfast and used her love of drama to write for hearing impaired children and adults in international shows.

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She ended up making her home in Preston to do a degree in British sign language and deaf studies due to UCLan’s reputation as a centre of excellence.

In 2014 she was asked, at short notice, to direct at the World Congress on mental health and deafness in Belfast using an entirely deaf cast.

She put it all together at short notice and began making a name for herself on the world stage.

Rebecca said: “ During my first year at UClan I scripted and directed another performance.

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“I ended up having to fly back to Northern Ireland every weekend during the first semester .

"I would catch the flight straight from class on a Friday and be arriving back in Preston on Monday morning just in time for my first class.

“It also toured during the Christmas break.”

Throughout her third year she has worked on another project in Ireland.

Rebecca’s work is aimed at breaking down the stigma surrounding deafness and this has led to her working with and training deaf professional actors - and is already setting up her own Artistic Sign Language Consultancy.

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While studying at UCLan she flew with a team to Morocco where she scripted three productions for a deaf residential school.

Besides the language difficulties, Rebecca had cultural problems to overcome and, she was the only hearing person in the school.

She said: “ My real passion is around script and using dance and drama to work with deaf cast members.

Rebecca said: “It is something I am passionate about and it is so great to be able to incorporate dance and movement into working with the deaf and breaking down barriers.

Coming to Preston made sense to me.”

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She added: “I am working for my trainee sign language interpreting badge so I can work as a freelance interpreter and develop my business further.

“Interpreting is another massive passion of mine and I am really looking forward to exploring that further.