The Italian Studies Program Presents:
A Dramatic Reading of Dacia Maraini’s Play

Norma ’44

Adapted for the stage from the translation by Monica Streifer and Lucia Re
Directed by Kimberly Jannarone (UCSC Theater Arts)

Set in an unnamed concentration camp in 1944 Germany, Norma ’44 tells the story of the perverse bond that grows between two female prisoners and the SS officer who coerces them into a performance of Bellini and Romani’s bel canto opera, Norma. The play explores dynamics of power, women’s solidarity, and art’s capacity to mediate, resist, and revise experience.

Author Dacia Maraini will be present for discussion with the audience.