The Exonerated

The Exonerated_edA visceral drama illuminating the true stories of six survivors of death row, The Exonerated is unapologetic in its approach, portraying a world of brutality coinciding with human triumph and transcendence at Chapel Off Chapel from 22 May 2015.

Going from the darkest abyss of human degradation to surviving a violent system, these six people give us hope for a brighter future. Witness a raw and delicate surrounding into a world just outside ours… it may be closer to home than you think.

The Sol III Company is a theatrical company founded due to its affiliation with Rubin Hurricane Carter and his work with wrongfully convicted prisoners and prisoner rehabilitation initiatives. The company uses the medium to raise awareness and much needed funds for programs in prisons in the U.S.A and Australia, and also aids with the legal costs of exoneration of the wrongfully convicted – most notably David McCallum III who was exonerated after being wrongfully incarcerated for 29 years.

“In 2013, I made my global journey to meet with Rubin & my beloved friend, David McCallum, at Otisville Correctional Facility in New York,” said Sol III Company Founder & Artistic Director, Andrei Schiller-Chan. “After many years of exchanging letters with David and emails with Rubin’s team, I was about to meet a man who changed my life, despite the fact he was living behind concrete and barbed wire.”

“The day before this was to happen, a play happened to catch my eye as I brushed past it in the drama book store. I opened the book and read one line, and from that single moment I began work on producing this play in Melbourne. It is an incredibly moving and inspiring piece, honest to the bone, although surrounding the death penalty, the play doesn’t lecture and instead focuses on the triumph of the human spirit.”

“For me personally I hope the play can give an insight into the prison industrial complex, and learn to rehabilitate rather than incarcerate. I hope it can illuminate an empathy so that tunnel vision and ignorance don’t feed into wrongful convictions, and above all I hope that my own story with David, led by utter truth and friendship, is evidence of how we can take the future of the world in our own hands and move forward together.”

Andrei Schiller-Chan brings a transcendental philosophy to the theatre, seeking to create a world of empathy for another’s suffering and generate positive change and communication to right wrongs. His close friendship with David McCallum serves as the inspiration for this production.

“Artful and moving… pays tribute to the resilience of human hearts and minds” – Variety

Producer/Director: Andrei Schiller-Chan  Featuring: Garikai Jani, Karla Hillam, Ben Taylor, Diana Brumen, Noelle Rego, Jordan Armstrong, Joseph Green, Vuyo Loko, Sam Lavery, Noray Mohammed Neberay  Assistant Director: Dianne Algate  Set Design: Hahna Read  Sound Design: Paul Raine  Costume Design/Set Assistant: Tania Tobiano  Lighting Designer: Travis Macfarlane

The Exonerated
Chapel Off Chapel, 12 Little Chapel Street, Prahran
Season: 22 May – 7 June 2015
Bookings: (03) 8290 7000 or online at: www.chapeloffchapel.com.au

For more information, visit: www.sol3company.com.au for details.

Image: The Exonerated