Ilya Kaminsky’a (CRF 2025) book of poetry Deaf Republic has garnered critical acclaim and received numerous awards and nominations since its publication in 2019. Now, in an almost prophetic fashion, its topical plot comes to life on stage on August 29th. Its timeliness, “urgent in its commentary on war yet as timeless as a fable,” is what appealed to Bush Moukarzel and Ben Kidd, co-directors of Dead Centre, the theater company that has adapted the work (The Guardian).
About the Book
Deaf Republic opens in an occupied country in a time of political unrest. When soldiers breaking up a protest kill a deaf boy, Petya, the gunshot becomes the last thing the citizens hear—all have gone deaf, and their dissent becomes coordinated by sign language. The story follows the private lives of townspeople encircled by public violence: a newly married couple, Alfonso and Sonya, expecting a child; the brash Momma Galya, instigating the insurgency from her puppet theater; and Galya’s girls, heroically teaching signs by day and by night luring soldiers one by one to their deaths behind the curtain. At once a love story, an elegy, and an urgent plea—Ilya Kaminsky’s long-awaited Deaf Republic confronts our time’s vicious atrocities and our collective silence in the face of them (Graywolf Press).
About the Play
The stage adaptation, by Dead Centre and poet Zoë McWhinney, opens at the Royal Court in London on August 29, featuring deaf and hearing actors retelling Kaminsky’s timeless story with a mix of spoken English, sign language, captions and silence. “The way they spoke about implicating the audience was fascinating to me.” Ilya tells The Guardian. “I didn’t want to see a Xerox copy of my book. It’s up to them to create their own art form; otherwise the energy gets stiff. And I want the energy to be electric.”
Ahead of the premiere, Ilya—who is hard of hearing himself—also sat down with Reuters to discuss resilience in war-time Ukraine, the power of poetry in holding attention in times of crisis, and what he makes of current events in his adopted home of the U.S. Read here.
The show will run at the Royal Court theatre, London through September 13th and then move to the Samuel Beckett theatre, Dublin, running from October 2nd to 5th as part of Dublin Theatre festival. For more information, BSL trailers, dates of accessible performances, and to purchase tickets, visit the links above.
Image: Jason Booher via dublintheatrefestival.ie.