PRIMA FACIE - DEM ANSCHEIN NACH

Suzie Miller's disturbing legal drama was a sensational success in London in 2022 and won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play in 2023! It is the feminist play of the moment on the MeToo debate and sexualized violence against women.

The legal term "Prima Facie" means "prima facie evidence", "until further notice", "prima facie evidence". At the center of the play is Tessa Ensler, a successful criminal defence lawyer who specializes in defending men accused of sexual assault or violence. However, it is usually the women who are cross-examined, who are often traumatized by the criminal proceedings. Another problem with criminal prosecution is that the offenses often take place without witnesses. This is because most rapes actually take place in private, i.e. in a marriage or within an existing relationship. As a result, Tessa, as a criminal defense lawyer, does not have to prove that the woman gave her consent! Rather, the defense only has to claim that the man she is defending did not know that there was no consent!

But then something happens that Tessa didn't think possible: she herself becomes the victim of rape. Suddenly she is faced with the question of what to do with her life. She becomes a witness for the prosecution and from then on experiences the events in the courtroom from the other side.

Author Suzie Miller has worked as a lawyer herself and is very familiar with the problems of prosecuting sexual violence. Her highly acclaimed drama is a feminist manifesto in which a woman raises her voice against a legal system that protects the perpetrators.

On January 29, 2024, Suzie Miller's drama "Prima Facie" will also be published as a novel on the German book market. Suzie Miller can be experienced live at Lit.cologne 2024, among other events.

See the highly topical play on selected dates at our special venue, the Theaterhaus Stuttgart!

"A Broadway hit" (nachtkritik.de)

"The play of the season" (Die Deutsche Bühne)

"A play causes a sensation" (Der Tagesspiegel)

"This play is a statement. It gets to the heart of the dilemma of abused women. It makes it clear why the number of unreported sexual offenses is so high, why many assaults are never reported. Because what happens afterwards is unbearable for many victims. "Prima Facie" is a plea for a change in the system." (Die Deutsche Bühne)

Premiere February 8, 2024

Trigger warning: This play deals with sexualized violence, rape and traumatization, among other things. Some audience members may find this disturbing. Attendance at the performance is at your own risk.

Help hotline "Violence against women": 116 016/ www.hilfetelefon.de