Switched at Birth (TV series)

Switched at Birth
Genre	Family drama Teen drama
Created by	Lizzy Weiss
Starring	Vanessa Marano Katie Leclerc Constance Marie Lea Thompson D. W. Moffett Lucas Grabeel Gilles Marini Sean Berdy
Theme music composer	John Swihart
Composer(s)	John Swihart
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English American Sign Language
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	93 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Lizzy Weiss Paul Stupin John Ziffren Becky Hartman Edwards Linda Gase
Producer(s)	David Hartle Shawn Wilt Sean Reycraft
Editor(s)	Peter Basinski Jill D'Agnenica Debby Germino Susan Kobata Mitchell Danton William Marrinson Nathan Easterling
Cinematography	Frank Byers Russ T. Alsobrook Daryn Okada Carlos González Phil Parmet
Camera setup	Multi-camera
Running time	45 minutes
Production company(s)	Pirates' Cove Entertainment Suzy B. Productions (from "This Is The Color Of My Dreams") Freeform Original Productions
Distributor	Disney–ABC Domestic Television
Release
Original network	Freeform
Original release	June 6, 2011 – present
External links
Official website

Switched at Birth is an American teen/family drama television series that premiered on ABC Family on June 6, 2011, at 9:00 ET/PT.^[1] The one-hour scripted drama is set in the Kansas City metropolitan area, and revolves around two teenagers who were switched at birth and grew up in very different environments: one in an affluent suburb, and the other in working-class areas. According to ABC Family, it is "the first mainstream television series to have multiple deaf and hard-of-hearing series regulars and scenes shot entirely in American Sign Language (ASL)".^[2]

The show's debut was ABC Family's highest-rated series debut to date.^[3] The series won an honorary Peabody Award in 2013, and on July 30, ABC Family ordered a third season which premiered on January 13, 2014.^[4] On August 13, 2014, ABC Family renewed the series for a fourth season, which premiered on January 6, 2015.^[5][6]

On October 21, 2015, ABC Family confirmed the series had been renewed for its fifth season, which will air on Freeform.^[7] It was later confirmed to be the final season.^[8] On March 19, 2016, it was announced that the fifth season was bumped to a 2017 premiere date.^[9]

Plot

Bay Kennish, a teenage girl from the wealthy Kansas City suburb of Mission Hills, Kansas, discovers from a school lab assignment that her AB blood type is incompatible with her type A parents John and Kathryn. Genetic testing confirms Bay is not the Kennishes' biological daughter. She uses the phrase "real parents," but is informed that "biological" is the preferred term. It is revealed that the hospital mistakenly switched Bay with another newborn, Daphne Paloma Vasquez, who lives with her single mother Regina and grandmother Adriana in the low-income neighborhood of East Riverside, Missouri. Daphne is deaf, having lost her hearing as a result of contracting meningitis at age three. The Kennishes invite Daphne and Regina to their home, and after learning that Regina is struggling financially, propose that they move into their guest house with Adriana, an offer that Regina accepts.

This forces the girls, along with both families, to understand their differences and embrace their similarities. The girls sometimes struggle with their identities, as Bay discovers she has inherited her artistic talent from Regina, and Daphne discovers she has inherited John's athletic skill and Kathryn's love of cooking. Both mothers learn to bond with their biological daughters, while often unintentionally angering their legal ones. John learns to relate to his new-found daughter by coaching her deaf school's basketball team and employing her in the office of one of the local chain of car washes that he owns. Bay is driven by a need to find her biological father Angelo Sorrento, who left Regina shortly after Daphne went deaf. That causes a bond between her and Emmett that later becomes an intense romance.

Season		Episodes	Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
	1	30	June 6, 2011	October 22, 2012
	2	21	January 7, 2013	August 19, 2013
	3	22	January 13, 2014	December 8, 2014
	4	20	January 6, 2015	October 26, 2015
	5	10	2017[10]	TBA

Cast

Main characters

Constance Marie, Katie Leclerc, Vanessa Marano, Lea Thompson, D.W. Moffett, and Lucas Grabeel

Gilles Marini and Sean Berdy

• Vanessa Marano as Bay Madeline Kennish (born Daphne Paloma Vasquez): the biological daughter of Regina Vasquez and Angelo Sorrento. She was raised in the wealthy neighborhood of Mission Hills by John and Kathryn Kennish. Bay is a very talented artist who has a particular love for Frida Kahlo. Bay can be very impulsive at times, and, at first, doesn't take the news of the switch very easily. However, she gradually gets better in accepting that Regina and the Kennishes are both her family.
• Katie Leclerc as Daphne Paloma Vasquez (born Bay Madeline Kennish): the biological daughter of John and Kathryn Kennish. Hard of hearing rather than deaf, Leclerc learned ASL at age 17, before she was diagnosed at age 20 with Ménière's disease which runs in her family. She developed a deaf accent for her role as Daphne, but speaks without it briefly in a scene in season 1, episode 9 where Daphne dreams the switch never occurred, and she was raised as Bay Kennish and retains her hearing. She also speaks without the accent through almost the entire episode 15 of season 2, "Ecce Mono", which is an alternative reality in which Daphne was raised by the Kennishes from age three and got a cochlear implant.
• Lea Thompson as Kathryn Kennish: Bay's legal mother and Daphne's biological mother. Thompson directed two episodes: "Prudence, Avarice, Lust, Justice, Anger" in season 2, and "Your Body is a Battleground" in season 3.
• Constance Marie as Regina Vasquez: Bay's biological mother and Daphne's legal mother.
• D. W. Moffett as John Kennish: Bay's legal father and Daphne's biological father.
• Lucas Grabeel as Toby Kennish: Bay's and Daphne's older brother.
• Gilles Marini as Angelo Sorrento (recurring season 1, regular season 2-3):^[11] Bay's biological father.
• Sean Berdy as Emmett Bledsoe, Daphne's best friend who is also deaf.

Recurring characters

• Marlee Matlin as Melody Bledsoe, Emmett's mother and Regina's friend who is also deaf.
• Ivonne Coll as Adriana Vasquez, Regina's mother. It is a running gag on the show that Adriana likes to watch telenovelas, and she quips that they cannot compete with the real-life drama caused by Angelo.^[12]
• Austin Butler as Wilkie, Toby's best friend who also dates Daphne briefly.
• Maiara Walsh as Simone Sinclair, Bay's nemesis and Toby's ex-girlfriend, as well as Wilkie's ex-girlfriend
• Blair Redford as Ty Mendoza, Bay's ex-boyfriend and Regina and Daphne's friend from their old neighborhood
• B.K. Cannon as Mary Beth, Bay's and Ty's friend and Travis' ex-girlfriend
• Anthony Natale as Cameron Bledsoe, Emmett's father
• TL Forsberg as Olivia, Cameron Bledsoe's stoned ex-girlfriend
• Christopher Wiehl as Patrick, Regina's ex-boyfriend
• Tania Raymonde as Bay's rebellious friend Zarra
• Justin Bruening as Chef Jeff Reycraft, Daphne's boss and short-term boyfriend
• Ryan Lane as Travis Barnes, Daphne's deaf friend. Lane's role as Travis earned him the RJ Mitte Diversity Award at the 2013 Media Access Awards.
• Max Lloyd-Jones as Noah, Bay's hard-of-hearing friend (and short-term boyfriend). The character parallels the real-life situation of Katie LeClerc, with hearing loss due to inherited Ménière's disease.
• Annie Ilonzeh as Lana, the mother of Angelo's second child
• Cassi Thomson as Nikki Papagus (Kennish), Toby's wife
• Stephanie Nogueras as Natalie Pierce, a Carlton student who becomes Bay's friend
• Max Adler as Miles "Tank" Conroy, Bay's ex-boyfriend and Toby's former roommate
• Alec Mapa as Renzo, Kathryn's friend who she meets while taking tap-dancing classes
• RJ Mitte as Campbell Bingman, a pre-med student, wheelchair user and volunteer at the free clinic where Daphne is serving her hours of community service. He briefly dates Daphne.
• David Castaneda as Jorge, Daphne's ex-boyfriend
• Bianca Bethune as Sharee, Daphne's friend and fellow Hockey player from Carlton
• Sharon Pierre-Louis as Iris, Daphne's hearing and signing college room-mate and cousin of her pre-med interpreter
• Adam Hagenbuch as Greg "Mingo" Shimingo, Daphne's college boyfriend and son of John's former business manager
• Nyle DiMarco as Garrett Banducci, a Carlton student and co-worker of Travis' who takes a romantic interest in Bay. He is also deaf.
• Daniel Durant as Matthew, a deaf boy who tries to frame hearing students at school.

Guest stars

• Meredith Baxter appears in season 1 as Kathryn's mother Bonnie, a co-investor in John's car wash business, who turns her favor from Bay to Daphne upon learning of the switch.
• Corbin Bernsen appears in season 1 as Wilkie's father, James Wilkes Jr., who has the unpleasant task of telling Daphne he is sending his screw-up son off to boarding school.
• Shelley Long appears in season 1 as Rya Bellows, a publisher who encourages Kathryn to write her own memoir of the switch.
• Terrell Tilford as Eric, opened the coffee shop and Regina is now a partner of. The two of them are also in a relationship. Eric has a young son and mysterious past.
• Rana Roy as a student in Daphne's class.
• Davi Santos appears in Season 3, Episode 12: Love Among the Ruins as Martin, Nacho's friend.

Production

On August 1, 2011, ABC Family announced that they were ordering more episodes for the first season of Switched at Birth, bringing the first season to a total of 30 episodes. The series continued with a winter premiere on January 3, 2012, ending on March 20, 2012, with 12 episodes.^[13][14] The series began airing the remaining 8 episodes of its first season beginning September 3, 2012.^[15] On August 17, 2012, ABC Family renewed Switched at Birth for a second season;^[16] it premiered on January 7, 2013.^[17] After the spring finale on March 11, 2013, the second season resumed on June 10, 2013.^[18] On July 30, 2013, ABC Family renewed the show for a third season to premiere on January 13, 2014.^[4]

The show has an American Sign Language expert who helps make sure that the sign language used by the four fluent regulars (Katie Leclerc, Sean Berdy, Constance Marie, and Marlee Matlin) all employ a similar dialect.^[19][20]

Airing on March 4, 2013 to mark the 25th anniversary of the "Deaf President Now" protests at Gallaudet University, the season 2 episode "Uprising"—which featured a similar student-led protest surrounding the closure of Carlton School for the Deaf, was produced almost entirely in sign language.^[21]

Filming locations

The show is filmed in Los Angeles, California. Establishing shots used in several episodes feature video of downtown Kansas City, Missouri, including: a shot of the Liberty Memorial in the first episode; the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art; and Loose Park.^[22] There are scenes filmed in Santa Clarita, Valencia, Beverly Hills, and Pasadena.^[23]

Broadcast

The series is first-run on the ABC Family cable channel. It airs in Ireland on TG4, in New Zealand on TV2, and in Australia on Fox8. The first 93 episodes are available on Netflix's Watch Instantly service.

Reception

The show's premiere on the ABC Family network was the highest-rated ever, with 3.3 million viewers. The total, including the first episode's repeat later that evening, was an estimated 4.9 million.

Ratings

Season	Timeslot (ET)	# Ep.	Premiered			Ended			TV Season	Viewers (in millions)
			Date	Premiere Viewers (in millions)	18-49 rating	Date	Finale Viewers (in millions)	18-49 rating
1	Monday 9:00 pm (June 6 – August 8, 2011) Tuesday 8:00 pm (January 3 – March 20, 2012) Monday 8:00 pm (September 3 – October 22, 2012)	30	June 6, 2011	3.30[24]	1.3[24]	October 22, 2012	1.78[25]	0.8[25]	2011-2012	2.08[26]
2	Monday 8:00 pm	21	January 7, 2013	1.70[27]	0.7[27]	August 19, 2013	1.96[28]	0.8[28]	2013	1.72[29]
3		22	January 13, 2014	1.76[30]	0.7[30]	December 8, 2014	1.40[31]	0.6[31]	2014	1.42[32]
4	Tuesday 9:00 pm (January 6 – March 10, 2015) Monday 8:00 pm (August 24 – October 26, 2015)	20	January 6, 2015	1.29[33]	0.6[33]	October 26, 2015	0.83[34]	0.3[34]	2015

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Recipient	Result
2011	ALMA Awards	Favorite TV Actress — Supporting Role	Constance Marie	Nominated
	American Scene Awards		Switched at Birth	Won
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Summer TV Show		Nominated
		Choice Summer TV Star — Male	Lucas Grabeel	Nominated
		Choice Summer TV Star — Female	Vanessa Marano	Nominated
		Choice Breakout Star	Katie Leclerc	Nominated
			Sean Berdy	Nominated
2012	ALMA Awards	Favorite TV Actress — Supporting Role	Constance Marie	Won
	Gracie Awards	Outstanding Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Drama Series or Special		Won
		Outstanding Producer — Entertainment	Lizzy Weiss	Won
	Imagen Awards	Best Supporting Actress — Television	Constance Marie	Nominated
		Best Primetime Program	Switched at Birth	Won
	Peabody Awards[35]			Won
	TCA Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming		Won
2013	Imagen Awards	Best Primetime TV Program		Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress — Television	Constance Marie	Won
	Media Access Awards[36]	Casting Society of America Award	Deedee Bradley	Won
		RJ Mitte Diversity Award	Ryan Lane	Won
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Show — Drama		Nominated
		Choice TV Actor — Drama	Lucas Grabeel	Nominated
		Choice TV Actress — Drama	Vanessa Marano	Nominated
	TCA Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming	Switched at Birth	Nominated
	TwoCents TV Awards	Drama Queens	Katie Leclerc	Won
2014	Imagen Awards	Best Primetime TV Program — Drama or Comedy	Switched at Birth	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress — Television	Constance Marie	Nominated
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actor — Drama	Lucas Grabeel	Nominated
		Choice TV Show — Drama	Switched at Birth	Nominated
	TCA Awards	Outstanding Achievement in Youth Programming		Nominated

Media information

ABC Family promoted the series by launching an online game, "Switched at Birth: Hunt for the Code" one week before the premiere. Bay, a graffiti artist, left her signature stencil image on ten different websites, and players searched for the picture and accompanying code to redeem sneak peeks and enter a drawing to win $4,000.^[37] Each weekday, ABCFamily.com posted two clues hinting at a site featuring the image, and instructed users to scan the code with a Microsoft Tag Reader for exclusive content.^[38] Additionally, each code had two letters for fans to collect and enter to win upon completion of the ten-digit code.

References

1. Andreeva, Nellie (March 7, 2011). "ABC Family Expands Schedule To 3 Nights Of Original Programming". Deadline.com. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
2. Pennington, Gail (January 12, 2013). "TCA: 'Switched at Birth' goes deeper into deaf culture : Entertainment". Stltoday.com. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
3. Barney, Chuck (June 29, 2011). "Chuck Barney: 'Switched at Birth' another winner for ABC Family". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
4. "ABC Family Announces Premiere Dates for 'Pretty Little Liars', 'Twisted', 'Switched at Birth' and 'The Fosters'". TvByTheNumbers. October 21, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
5. "ABC Family’s ‘Switched at Birth’ Renewed For Fourth Season". Deadline. Aug 13, 2014. Retrieved Aug 19, 2014.
6. Bibel, Sara (November 12, 2014). "ABC Family Announces January Premiere Dates for 'Pretty Little Liars', 'The Fosters', 'Chasing Life' & More". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
7. Swift, Andy (October 21, 2015). "Switched at Birth Renewed: Season 5 Coming to ABC Family/Freeform". TVLine. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
8. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/switched-at-birth-end-season-874765
9. http://tvline.com/2016/03/19/switched-at-birth-final-season-premiere-2017/
10. http://tvline.com/2016/03/19/switched-at-birth-final-season-premiere-2017/
11. "Gilles Marini Promoted to Series Regular on ‘Switched at Birth’ - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. September 18, 2012. Retrieved September 25, 2012.
12. Season 2, episode 3, Duel of Two Women.
13. "ABC Family Orders More Episodes of Switched at Birth". ABC Family. August 1, 2011. Retrieved August 1, 2011.
14. "Switched at Birth, Pretty Little Liars, The Lying Game: return." TVseriesfinale.com Retrieved 11/03/11.
15. Bibel, Sara (July 10, 2012). "'Switched at Birth' to Air Its Season Premiere Monday, September 3; Season Kicks Off With All Day Marathon". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
16. Kondolojy, Amanda (August 17, 2012). "ABC Family Renews 'Melissa & Joey', 'Baby Daddy', 'Switched at Birth' & Orders Additional Episodes of 'Bunheads'". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
17. Ausiello, Michael (September 28, 2012). "'Pretty Little Liars' Season 3b Return Date — Plus 'Bunheads' Return Date". TV Line. Retrieved October 22, 2012.
18. "ABC Family Announces Summer Lineup Including Premieres of 'The Fosters', 'Twisted' + Return of 'Baby Daddy', Pretty Little Liars' & 'Switched at Birth'". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
19. "Q & A with Constance Marie from "Switched at Birth"". modoration.com. 14 July 2011. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
20. Yawn, Jacquelyne (15 July 2011). "Special Interview with ABC Family "Switched At Birth" Katie Leclerc". San Diego Entertainer Magazine. Retrieved July 16, 2011. Katie Leclerc
21. "ABC Family’s ‘Switched at Birth’ ASL Episode Recalls Gallaudet Protest". The Daily Beast. Retrieved December 12, 2013.
22. ABC Family, Switched At Birth - Season 1, Episode 3
23. http://www.seeing-stars.com/Locations/SwitchedAtBirth.shtml
24. "Monday Cable Ratings: 'Pawn Stars' Tops Night; Plus 'WWE Raw,' 'Secret Life,' NHL Stanley Cup Finals, 'American Pickers' & More - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. June 7, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2012.
25. "Monday Cable Ratings: 'Monday Night Football' Triumphs + Presidential Debate Ratings, 'On The Record', 'Monday Night RAW', 'SportsCenter' & More - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. October 23, 2012. Retrieved November 1, 2012.
26. Switched at Birth: Season One Ratings
27. "Monday Cable Ratings: College Football Dominates Night + 'WWE Monday Night RAW', 'Catfish', 'Love & Hip Hop 3', 'Teen Mom II' & More". TV by the Numbers. January 9, 2013.
28. "Monday Cable Ratings: NFL Preseason Wins Night + 'RAW', 'Basketball Wives', 'TI & Tiny', 'Marrying the Game' & More". TV by the Numbers. August 20, 2013.
29. Switched at Birth: Season Two Ratings
30. Amanda Kondolojy (January 14, 2014). "Monday Cable Ratings: 'Monday Night RAW' & 'Love & Hip Hop' Tie for Lead + 'Single Ladies', 'Archer' & More". TV by the Numbers.
31. Bibel, Sara (December 9, 2014). "Monday Cable Ratings: 'Monday Night Football' Tops Night, 'Love & Hip Hop Hollywood', 'The Fosters', 'Major Crimes', 'Switched at Birth' & More". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
32. Switched at Birth: Season Three Ratings
33. Bibel, Sara (January 8, 2015). "Tuesday Cable Ratings: 'The Haves and the Have Nots' Wins Night' 'Pretty Little Liars', 'Switched at Birth', 'Dance Moms', 'The Real World' & More". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
34. Porter, Rick (October 27, 2015). "Monday cable ratings: 'Monday Night Football' leads the way, plus 'Real Housewives of OC,' 'Love & Hip Hop,' 'WWE Raw'". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
35. 72nd Annual Peabody Awards, May 2013.
36. "2013 Media Access Awards". Writers Guild of America. November 1, 2013.
37. Anne, Beth (May 26, 2011). "Switched at Birth Scavenger Hunt". Nice Girls TV. Retrieved June 3, 2011.
38. "Switched at Birth: Hunt for the Code". Hunt for the Code Game. ABCFamily.com. Retrieved June 3, 2011.

External links

• Official website
• Switched at Birth at the Internet Movie Database
• Switched at Birth at TV.com
• ABC Spark website