VIGIL is a new theatre work of scale by Outer Urban Projects that challenges how we navigate the world and who feels safe in it.

At its heart, VIGIL asks the questions: What lives matter? Do our lives matter? It brings together visionary artists and communities to map the fault lines of belonging, race, gender and terror in the city’s everyday spaces.

Set on a tram moving through a city, VIGIL sees some passengers haunted by war, exile and uprising. While others are on their way to a good night out on the town. They draw us into a place both personal and political.

VIGIL boasts a compelling creative team: playwrights Bryan Andy, Kush Kuiy, Sahra Davoudi, Samah Sabawi and Patricia Cornelius.

The work is led by director and composer Irine Vela, with choreography by Tara Jade Samaya, an exceptional cast of actors, dance artists, musicians, designers and the El Amal Arabic speaking women’s ensemble from Banksia Gardens Community Services.

The experience of many of the artists anchors the work, linking it to global histories of persecution and resistance, including those connected to South Sudan, Iran and Palestine. VIGIL is also grounded in Australia’s First Nations history and truth.

Outer Urban Projects Artistic Director Irine Vela says, “VIGIL is a collective homage to real acts of loss, of protest and our impulse to honour lives that have been forgotten.”

Arts House Head of Programming Naomi Velaphi said VIGIL emphasises Outer Urban Projects commitment to ambitious, socially engaged and multidisciplinary art.

“VIGIL is an expansive and courageous project that bridges film, performance and community practice. It invites audiences to think about safety, risk, empathy and complicity in ways that resonate far beyond the theatre,” Velaphi said.

A free film installation featuring the award-winning short dance film VIGIL is presented alongside the live performance at Arts House.

Produced by Outer Urban Projects and directed by Pippa and Tara Jade Samaya (the Samaya Wives), with an original score by Irine Vela, the film traces the ripple effects of gender-based violence through immersive imagery and sound. It offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how the film was conceived and made.