Participatory Play Reading
Join Marguerite in the Sanctuary for a participatory reading of scenes from the 1965 play The Investigation by Peter Weiss. We will read a few of the sections, or cantos, from the script, followed by discussion and conversation about the play’s meaning and how it relates to today and what is happening in the U.S. and around the world.
Refreshments and scripts will be provided. Please RSVP to Marguerite so we can plan for appropriate numbers of scripts and snacks!
About the play:
The Investigation (1965) is a play by German playwright Peter Weiss that depicts the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials of 1963–1965. It carries the subtitle “Oratorio in 11 Cantos”. Weiss was an observer at the trials and developed the play partially from the reports of Bernd Naumann. The play takes place in a courtroom during the Frankfurt Auschwitz trials (1963–1965). Weiss did not intend a literal reconstruction of the courtroom nor representation of the camp itself. Auschwitz is present only in the words of the perpetrators, the victims, and the personnel of the court.
Critics highlight its effectiveness as a work of early verbatim (documentary) theater, using stripped-down, emotionally detached prose to expose the mechanical nature of the Holocaust. The text doesn’t just look backward; it warns against the potential for atrocities to repeat and demands ongoing vigilance.
