Rose Ayling-Ellis 'heckled' during stage performance

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: Rose Ayling-Ellis with the Talent Show award for 'Strictly Come Dancing' in the winners' room at the National Television Awards 2022 at OVO Arena Wembley on October 13, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: Rose Ayling-Ellis with the Talent Show award for 'Strictly Come Dancing' in the winners' room at the National Television Awards 2022 at OVO Arena Wembley on October 13, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images) (Dave J Hogan via Getty Images)

Rose Ayling-Ellis has expressed her shock after being heckled on stage during a theatre performance for using sign language.

The EastEnders star and Strictly Come Dancing champion - who is starring as Celia in a West End production of Shakespeare's As You Like It which uses BSL sign language and captions - revealed an audience member had to be removed for interrupting the play with a rant against accessible theatre.

Ayling-Ellis, 28, wrote on Instagram: "During the matinee yesterday, an angry man in the audience interrupted the show with an entitled rant screaming that we were 'discriminating against hearing people!'. He was looking at me directly. It was shocking.

"The video is the reaction when we got back on the stage after he was kicked off. We picked up from Touchstone's line, 'The more pity that fools may not speak wisely what wise men do foolishly'."

Read more: Rose Ayling-Ellis to sign CBeebies Bedtime Story for Deaf Awareness Week

The actor - who is profoundly deaf and uses hearing aids and sign language to communicate - went on: "In the same audience, a little deaf girl sat in the front row with her parents signing to her. Deaf members of the audience are able to sit wherever they want and whenever they want. Hearing people reading the captions, laughing and reacting to our signing on stage, coming into our world and understanding Shakespeare because of this. Two days ago, we had a BSL performance show, and 106 deaf people turn up.

"This is why we do accessible theatre."

 Dickon Gough, Cal Watson, Michael Bruce, Martha Plimpton, Tom Mison, Ben Wiggins, Alfred Enoch, Mary Malone, Rose Ayling-Ellis, June Watson, Leah Harvey, Nathan Queeley - Dennis, Syakira Moeladi and Tom Edden attend the opening night of
Rose Ayling-Ellis (far right) on stage at Sohoplace theatre in As You Like It. (Getty Image) (David M. Benett via Getty Images)

Ayling-Ellis won dance contest Strictly in 2021 after making history as the first deaf contestant on the show, in which she counted to keep time to the music.

As a result a BSL interpreter was added to the Strictly Live Tour in 2022.

She won a TV Bafta for her Couple's Choice dance with partner Giovanni Pernice, which invited viewers into her world as a deaf dancer with the silent sequence in their routine to Symphony by Clean Bandit featuring Zara Larsson.

Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice won Strictly 2021 after their silent Couples Choice dance. (BBC)
Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice won Strictly 2021 after their silent Couples Choice dance. (BBC) (BBC/Guy Levy)

She said afterwards: "I think it's super important because it's an opportunity to show on such a big platform with millions of people watching, and change their concept of what they think deaf people are like. I'm very proud of that."

Read more: 'Strictly' viewers love that Giovanni Pernice is still using British Sign Language in shows

Ayling-Ellis rose to fame as Frankie Lewis BBC One EastEnders, which she joined in 2020, but left last year to pursue other roles.

Watch: Rose Ayling-Ellis quashes Doctor Who rumours

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