Seven (play)

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Seven is a documentary play, first performed in 2008, written by seven women playwrights based on interviews with seven women around the world who have fought for the rights and well-being of women and girls.[1]

The women[edit]

The women whose stories form the basis of Seven are all involved in the Vital Voices Global Partnership. They are:[1]

  • Hafsat Abiola, Nigeria, who founded the Kudirat Initiative for Democracy and works to improve relations between Chinese and African women; winner of 2016 Global Leadership Award for Leadership in Public Life[2]
  • Farida Azizi, Afghanistan, campaigner for women's rights and peace in her country[2]
  • Annabella De Leon, Guatemala, congresswoman and campaigner against corruption and for the rights of the poor; winner of 2003 Global Leadership Award for Political Participation
  • Mukhtar Mai, Pakistan, survivor of a gang rape and campaigner for women's education; winner of 2006 Global Leadership Awards Fern Holland Award[2]
  • Inez McCormack, Northern Ireland, former president of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions; winner of 2002 Global Leadership Award for Political Participation[2]
  • Marina Pisklakova-Parker, Russia, founder of first Russian hot-line for victims of domestic violence; winner of 2004 Global Leadership Award for Human Rights[2]
  • Mu Sochua, Cambodia, former Minister of Women's Affairs and campaigner against sex-trafficking; winner of 2005 Global Leadership Award for Human Rights[2]

The playwrights[edit]

Seven women collaborated to write the play:[1]

Development of the play[edit]

Each playwright worked with one of the women whose stories make up the play over a series of interviews in 2006–2007, and wrote a dramatic monologue based on these. The writers met in February 2007 to read the monologues together, and then worked them into a unified script during a Residency Fellowship retreat at Bard College. The first draft was read in July 2007.[3]

The play was first performed on 21 January 2008 at the 92nd Street Y in New York, directed by Evan Yionoulis. Since then it has been translated into 20 languages and performed in 32 countries, as of May 2016.[3][4]

Some productions have involved well-known professional actors, as when Meryl Streep read the part of Inez McCormack at the Hudson Theatre on New York's Broadway.[5][6] Other productions have involved amateur groups or public figures, as when a group of senior Belarus government ministers performed it in Minsk in 2015[7] and Washington Supreme Court justice Mary Yu read the part of Farida Azizi at Town Hall Seattle in 2016.[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Seven". Dramatists Play Service. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Past Global Leadership Awards". Vital Voices Global Partnership. Archived from the original on 27 October 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  3. ^ a b "The Story of Seven". Seven - a documentary play. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  4. ^ "About Seven". Seven - a documentary play. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  5. ^ Robinson, Mary (1 February 2013). "Inez McCormack obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  6. ^ McGarrigle, Heather (2 March 2010). "Why Meryl Streep needs to get an Northern Ireland accent". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  7. ^ "Belarus' high-ranking officials take part in documentary play on women's rights". Belarus News. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  8. ^ Gruener, Posey (3 March 2016). "For One Night, A Washington Supreme Court Justice Will Step Into An Afghan Woman's Shoes". KUOW.org. Retrieved 23 May 2016.

External links[edit]

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