Thought Curfew
Venue: Ubumuntu Festival, RwandaCurators: Ruwanthie de Chickera
Date: 15th July 2018 -
“Thought Curfew” is a lyrical performance exploring how entire communities can become unthinking in an instant. It addresses the sudden and widespread violence that follows and examines individuals’ struggle to cope with the rapid spread of senselessness.
The play depicts a little girl fleeing from her father as a growing wave of people succumbs to a fast-spreading thought curfew.
Following her journey from home to the edge of her world, the little girl escapes the suspected invisible creep of the Thought Curfew. She flees to various worlds – the world of Refugees, Development Aid, the Military and finally Religion. In each world, she witnesses the gradual escalation of the effects of non-thinkingness. Despite her efforts to escape, the little girl’s small size prevents her from understanding the world’s roundness, and soon the spreading thought curfew and its unthinking people will surround her.
“Thought Curfew” is performed by an ensemble of six actors and combines live performance with visual animation. It premiered at the Kigali Genocide Memorial Amphitheatre as part of the Ubumuntu Festival of Humanity in July 2018.
The play was funded by the Arts and Design Research Centre of Sheffield Hallam University and the Empathy and Risk Inquiry. It was staged with the support of the Ubumuntu Festival and Mashrika Performing Arts and Media Company.
