SONDER achieved huge success during the Durham Fringe Festival last week. This is a verbatim play produced by Wrongtree, talking about strangers, connection, community, hopes and fears. The stage is set in Durham, and the text is constructed solely from the verbatim words of 5 residents, exploring how our lives often silently collide with those around us, from the mundane to the massive.
SONDER’s creative team shared the view they wanted to convey to the audience is that strangers aren’t as different as we might think. They may be connected to us invisibly.
Elena Jennings-Mars, co-writer and co-director, explains that the word SONDER comes from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. “It sounds very dark, but it means this is sort of outlet. It’s the profound realization that strangers passing you by are living a life as complex and multifaceted as your own,” she said.
The play also received positive feedback from its audience. “It was really beautifully done,” said David Sherman, who attended the play. “It was very moving.” Ben Donaghy and Finn Durkan-Mills also said it’s a fantastic play. The full video of the audience street interview can be seen on Instagram:
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