On DECEMBER 11, 2011
Our audience was invited to participate in a provocative evening presented in Association with Amnesty International and in Collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute in downtown Los Angeles.
Especially Now: Create the World Together used the US premiere of Stefano Massini‘s play, ‘A Stubborn Woman, a theatrical memorandum on Anna Politkovskaya,’* as the catalyst for both discussion and action.
*Anna Politkovskaya was a journalist internationally renowned for her critical coverage of the Chechen conflict. She was found slain in her apartment building in Moscow in 2006. She has since become a symbol for truth and courage in journalism. For further information on Ms. Politkovskaya please visit the links below.
The play featured a cast of American, Italian and Russian actors performing in both English and Italian with subtitles. The cast included Eugene Alper, Lisa Cirincione, Carolina Gamini, Alexandra Goodman, Henri Lubatti, Kate Maher, Steve Mazurek, Judith Scarpone, Jason Thomas and Randalph Thompson.
A panel discussion exploring the impact on civil rights and democracies when journalists suffer violent reprisal for reporting truth in conflict zones, and why we in the States should care about this issue, was led by Sandy Tolan, author of ‘The Lemon Tree’. Amnesty International Regional Field Director Kala Mendoza brought to the discussion his experience as a human rights advocate.
Advisory Board Members James Cromwell and Mike Farrel joined Kala Mendoza to inform the audience of the opportunity to engage in a human rights action in support of the Iranian student Majid Tavakkoli who has been imprisoned for speaking against the government.
The evening concluded with a reception on stage which allowed everyone to continue the discussions on the themes of the evening.
We thank Daniel G. Lam for photographing the event, the students of California State University, Long Beach for video taping the event, and Eugene Alper, Brenda Varda, John Urban and Vanessa Stewart for their wonderful music.
Through creative and community-building events such as this, The Global Theatre Project crosses international boundaries to bring awareness to our common humanity.
Further information on Anna Politkovskaya can be found:
The Committee to Protect Journalists
The Guardian (several sources of information on the scope of her life and death)
VIDEOS:
Documentary on Anna Politkovskaya (in Russian with English subtitles)
