A new play, “These Birds: A play inspired by death, flowers, and Farkle,” opened in Juneau Jan. 29. The show was born from interviews and conversations with local residents about death and dying.
The Theater Alaska play is written by Juneau playwright Merry Ellefson. But the seed for the project started with hospice chaplain Claire Richardson.
Richardson wanted to find a way to inspire people to talk about death. She said creating a play from community-based interviews was a vehicle to ground stories of death and dying in Juneau.
“I kept thinking, there has to be a way to have people to be able to have conversations about death. It’s so challenging, even with all the books and web resources and everything that we can offer. It’s that personal connection,” she said during a recent Juneau Afternoon interview on KTOO.
Richardson contacted Ellefson, who has previously written plays based on interviews with Juneau residents and Alaskans across the state.
The women conducted about 25 interviews and Ellefson said it was a profound journey. Though death can be a somber topic, Ellefson said there’s so much life in connecting through stories.
She said she’s grateful for everyone they interviewed, as well as for the eight performers and other artists who transformed the script into a theatrical experience, honoring all the conversations and interviews.
“These stories live in our community. They are part of us. They are of us. We hear ourselves here, whether that’s a whale breaching or someone talking about a tragedy,” Ellefson said.
“These Birds: A play inspired by death, flowers, and Farkle” runs through Feb. 15, with two performances this Friday and Saturday at Ḵunéix̱ Hídi Northern Light United Church, and four shows next week at various locations.
Theater Alaska offers ticketed and free performances. Find details and the full schedule of performances and post-show conversations at theateralaska.org.
Editor’s note: KTOO is a media sponsor for “These Birds: A play inspired by death, flowers, and Farkle.”
