A production of TheatreFIRST of Oakland, California.

TheatreFIRST secured the premiere American rites to this fascinating and epic play - edited by Richard Norton-Taylor - a play created for and by the Tricycle Theatre Company in London.

The play is drawn from the text of the 1998 Public Inquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence. The American premiere featured a multicultural cast of 30, with the historic Ehmann Hall in downtown Oakland transformed into the British courtroom; the audience surrounding the event, witnesses to the actual inquiry.

The Play: On April 22nd, 1993, a young black man, Stephen Lawrence, is stabbed to death in South London. Evidence and eyewitnesses point to five white youths and an unprovoked racist murder. Five years later, no one has been brought to justice for the crime. A public inquiry is held. This play is taken entirely from the words spoken at that inquiry. It is a searing indictment of the insidious "normality" of racism, even in the institutions we trust to deliver justice ~ and also an extraordinary and deeply moving piece of theatre.

"Don't, do not, please do not, miss it. This is a stunning and inspired piece of theatre, and we should be proud Oakland is its American launching pad. Stuart's brilliant weaving of these fascinating and frightening interviews is complemented by his inspired direction - as the 30 actors (from six different continents) come at the audience from every direction. The crime itself is reenacted at different speeds, angles and surprising moments. This is a strong, relevent and fine piece of theatre; an epic tale told in epic proportions." - Contra Costa Times