Arianna Stucki speaking of “Memorial” and the wish to tell how people survive an insurmountable loss:

“Memorial” is a verbatim drama featuring the words of five people who suffered great personal loss in the Christchurch mosque attacks. It’s the work of Arianna Stucki and Adam El-Sayigh. In 2019 they were just graduating from the Juilliard School in New York.

But this is not a work created by hands that are distant or remote. The interviewees have been collaborators in that, with every new draft, the script has been shared with them and shaped by them.

“Memorial” has been staged in the USA and had joint play-readings between the US and groups in Beirut, Lebanon and with Kampala, Uganda. Audiences will have within them people who have experienced loss: the loss of a mother to cancer; a child to suicide; or a community, as in Boston USA, who've suffered from gun violence. In each case, these communities and individuals – separated by space – have been united in understanding and respect.

Adam and Arianna have now developed workshops for high school students, based around the verbatim techniques that shaped this play.

The play itself and the workshop programmes offer powerful platforms and promise for learning to listen to and hear others.

Members of the Christchurch Invitation have been closely involved with this work from the first meeting with Arianna in Christchurch in June 2019. We are actively involved in promoting the play, and in working to see that this can be performed (hopefully together with the workshops for high school students) here in New Zealand.

We invite others who work in the space of performing arts to speak with us.