created by thomas murray, dor cosby-atkinson, francine dulong, erik ehn, and bob leonard

In commemoration of the 32 victims of the Virginia Tech massacre in 2007, six community events were organized in Blacksburg over a period of 32 days in 2017 under the umbrella of The Space Between.

March 25, 2017: What a Stranger May Know
32 solo plays were written by playwright Erik Ehn from information in the public domain about the 32 victims. Each play is cyclical in its structure, based on Noh drama. A living memorial garden of performance was constructed on Virginia Tech's Henderson Lawn, where 12 of the 32 plays were performed simultaneously as members of the campus community wandered through at their own pace. What a Stranger May Know was co-directed by Francine Dulong who lost her mother Jocelyne Couture-Nowak in the 2007 tragedy. A community reflection dialogue followed the performance.

Thomas Murray pronounced a series of French phrases aloud, as he read from a script memorializing a professor slain on the Virginia Tech campus 10 years ago. Murray’s part honors the memory of Jocelyne Couture-Nowak, a French teacher killed in the shooting. Her daughter, Francine Dulong, co-director of the play, watched the actors practice and offered suggestions about following the unusual stage directions.

Dulong, 33, spoke from experience. When the play debuted in 2012 at Rhode Island’s Brown University, she read her mother’s part.

The Roanoke Times (March 23, 2017)

March 27, 2017: "Who we are," an active dialogue about community

April 1, 2017: "How do we talk about this?" an active dialogue about language

April 4, 2017: "April 2007 to 2017," an active dialogue about time

April 8, 2017: "What does our future Blacksburg look like?" an active dialogue about action

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