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Veterans Memorial Building, Santa Cruz
Directed by Simon Hayward.
In 1895, Oscar Wilde went from celebrated playwright to prisoner in a matter of months. Drawing on trial transcripts, letters, newspaper accounts, and Wilde’s own writings, Moisés Kaufman’s play follows the libel suit and two criminal trials that brought about his downfall. Part courtroom drama and part Greek tragedy, it explores the complexity of Wilde himself and the unresolved relationship between societal norms and individual freedom.