Switched at Birth (TV series)


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. 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 a working-class neighborhood. 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 ".
The show's debut was ABC Family's highest-rated series debut to date. 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. On August 13, 2014, ABC Family renewed the series for a fourth season, which premiered on January 6, 2015.
On October 21, 2015, ABC Family confirmed the series had been renewed for its fifth season, which was later confirmed to be the final season. On March 19, 2016, it was announced that the fifth season was bumped from a March 2016 to a January 2017 premiere date. In October 2016, the network announced that the final season would premiere on January 31, 2017.

Plot

Bay Kennish, a teenage girl living in the Kansas City suburb of Mission Hills, Kansas, discovers from a school lab assignment that her blood type is incompatible with that of her parents. Genetic testing confirms Bay is not the Kennishes' biological daughter. It is revealed that the hospital mistakenly switched Bay at birth with Daphne, who has been raised by 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 arrangement forces the girls, along with both families, to understand their differences and embrace their similarities. The girls sometimes struggle with their identities. Bay discovers that 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.

Cast

Main characters

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. After the airing of the series' initial 10 episodes ended on August 8, 2011, the series continued with a winter premiere on January 3, 2012, airing an additional 12 episodes through March 20, 2012. The series began airing the remaining 8 episodes of its first season on September 3, 2012. On, ABC Family renewed Switched at Birth for a second season; it premiered on. After the spring finale on, the second season resumed on. On July 30, 2013, ABC Family renewed the show for a third season to premiere on January 13, 2014.
The show has an American Sign Language expert who helps make sure that the sign language used by the four fluent regulars all employ a similar dialect.
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.

Filming locations

The show was 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. Scenes were filmed in Santa Clarita, Valencia, Beverly Hills, and Pasadena.

Broadcast

Country/RegionChannelPremiereTitleRef.
FreeformJune 6, 2011Switched at Birth
Latin AmericaSony SpinNovember 7, 2011Cambiadas al nacer
YTV
W Network		January 16, 2012Switched at Birth
DeeJay TVFebruary 8, 2012Switched at Birth – Al posto tuo
Disney ChannelDezember 3, 2012Их перепутали в роддоме
6terJanuary 3, 2014Switched



Disney ChannelJanuary 20, 2014Switched at Birth
YES dramaJune 6, 2011הוחלפו בלידתן

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

Awards and nominations

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. 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. Additionally, each code had two letters for fans to collect and enter to win upon completion of the ten-digit code.