A one night only staged reading, at ArtRage performed by Carmen Viviano-Crafts, of excepts from the 2006 play My Name is Rachel Corrie as a fundraiser for the local chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace and Middle East Childrens’ Alliance. Admission at the door is $10-$20 Sliding Scale.

On March 16, 2003, Rachel Corrie, a 23 year old American, was crushed to death by an Israeli Army bulldozer in Gaza as she was trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home.

My Name is Rachel Corrie is a one-woman play composed from Rachel’s own journals, letters and emails- creating a portrait of a messy, articulate, Salvador Dali loving chain smoker (with a passion for Pat Benatar) who left her home and school in Olympia, WA to work as an activist in the heart of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This piece has been surrounded by both controversy and impassioned proponents, and has raised an unprecedented call to support political work and the difficult discourse it creates.

Performer’s Note: “It’s plain to see why this story is more relevant than ever, as the conflict and destruction Rachel herself was aiming to prevent has not only continued, but worsened dramatically. In times when things feel most ‘complicated’ and difficult conversations are ever harder to have, Rachel’s writings remind us of the importance of speaking out anyway; of taking action anyway. Rachel’s life and untimely death inspired a new generation of activists, and put into sharp focus an issue and a people largely ignored by Western media. While the bombs still fall, her story again calls us to action as the lives of more than 34,000 Palestinians have been lost, but more can be saved if we act now.”

Carmen Viviano-Crafts is a 3 time SALT award winning actress, sometime cabaret singer, local social worker and (still) aspiring activist. Carmen is a three year board member at ArtRage, and a member of the Syracuse Peace Council’s Plowshares Craftsfair planning committee. Carmen believes in the power of art and theater to inspire empathy, and action, which is the motivation behind performing this piece, at this time.