Play: Neda Wants to Die

After trauma, one speaks of the necessity of telling a story. In a production that challenges our comfort and our preconceptions about the line between victim and villain, Neda Wants to Die is important, provocative, and moving. Ultimately, the play shows us that sexual violence is not an issue affecting women alone, we all share the burdens and psychological effects of profoundly violent actions. When few things are clear, we need art to understand.

 

The play was commissioned by the World Bank as part of a three-day exhibition to raise awareness of the epidemic of gender-based violence, “1 in 3” (so-named for the grim statistic that fully a third of women in the world will experience gender-based violence in their lifetimes). It premiered in July of 2014, where it was met with a standing ovation. Its profound effect in the development community and beyond has led to performances at the United Nations, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Vital Voices, and Capital Fringe Fest in 2015. Neda Wants to Die received a 5-star Best of the 2015 Capital Fringe rating from DC Metro Theatre Arts. The play has been praised as daring and necessary—particularly as past performances have triggered conversations among experts, the audience, and the actors about violence, conflict resolution and human rights.

 

At 6:30pm there will be a reception in Founders Hall, and the play will begin at 7:30pm. Please stay with us following the play for a panel discussion with the writer and director of Neda Wants to Die, Mr. Luigi Laraia, as well as Dr. Sandra Cheldelin and Dr. Sara Cobb from the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution.

 

Please join us for a 75-minute journey into the depths of ourselves, our basest instincts, and the glimmers of hope we find in the midst of unanswerable questions.