3 min readDeath row – a place where prisoners await execution, a process where disturbing stories and dark depths emerge. This is the focus of The Exonerated, a gritty stage play which gives the account of six wrongfully-convicted survivors of America’s death row in their own words, unfolding at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre on Thursday 6 to Sunday 16 June 2019 (event listing here), directed by the theatre’s Director and co-founder Joseph Houston.
The Exonerated is set to grip audiences and question their prejudices, not just in terms of capital punishment, but raising questions of life, death and justice. The play follows the six stories of wrongfully convicted inmates within America’s legal system: those of Kerry Max Cook, Gary Gauger, David Keaton, Delbert Tibbs, Robert Earl Hayes and Sunny Jacobs; all who were imprisoned and facing the death penalty– ultimately for crimes they did not commit.
In this production, the true and shocking stories of these survivors of death row are brought to the fore, informed by interviews, letters, transcripts, case files and the public record over time. Not only do the emotions of fear, dread and outrage emerge, but also the profound and poignant quality of hope, as the prisoners fought to clear their names, and the play also considers their paths to freedom.
Moving from first-person true-life accounts to the intense settings of courtrooms and prisons, The Exonerated is both powerful and unique, never before staged in Manchester – having premiered Off Broadway in 2002 and since turned into a 2005 film and another London production in 2006. Its upcoming northern premiere at Manchester’s Hope Mill is expected to be especially evocative - as the play, which was written by Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen, is being reimagined by Houston in the form of a true-life crime drama. Expect high-intensity intrigue, investigation and suspense.
Hope Mill is also an especially atmospheric setting for The Exonerated, a Grade II*listed former industrial building on Pollard Street in the New Islington area of Manchester, layered with historical intrigue and depth. It is within this dramatic red brick former cotton-spinning mill that the play will unfold, with cast members either appearing live on stage, or in integrated filmed footage.
The cast itself (pictured above) has recently been announced, with on-stage actors including Charles Angiama, Ben Boskovic, Rebecca Eastham, Richard Galloway and Jason Lamar Ricketts. Appearing in the integrated film footage are Gary Fannin, Eva Fontaine, Lucy Greenaway, Jack Kristiansen, Kevin Mathurin, Pippa Winslow and Law X. This diverse cast will present these Death Row accounts in a truly moving way, as Artistic Director Joseph Houston reflects:
“I am so thrilled with the amazingly diverse cast we have found for The Exonerated. Many of our filmed actors have incredible experience and I know they will really capture the documentary style filming as well as make these heart-wrenching stories very real.
“We have also assembled an exciting group of actors who will play live in the production and multi-role many different characters to help bring these stories to life.
“I can’t wait to get started and to share The Exonerated with our audiences.”
Tickets are available from £10 and online at www.hopemilltheatre.co.uk
By Emily Oldfield
