About the Project
Munich 1917. A hotel room. A jar of poison. A failed suicide. A lone actress.
The tragic fate of Michael Jackson left the world wondering who the private people behind the public facades really are. What lies beneath the make-up and the costumes? TILLY NO-BODY asks these questions, through the tumbling thoughts of Tilly Wedekind, wife and muse of the famous German playwright, Frank Wedekind (Spring Awakening and Lulu). Weaving together biography, personal letters, drama, and original songs, the production explores the Wedekinds’ passionate marriage, leading to Tilly’s attempted suicide and Frank’s premature death. Tilly devoted her life to Frank’s work. During their marriage he wrote powerful plays fueled by their tempestuous relationship, insisting that Tilly play the female leads. Private affairs became public consumables, and Frank took control of Tilly in every respect, weighing and measuring her body, and insisting that without him, she would be a nobody. With nothing but his lines of dialogue, she was robbed of her own voice.
Tilly No-Body: Catastrophes of Love is devised and performed by Bella Merlin with director Miles Anderson and composer David Roesner, and designed by award-winning designers John Iacovelli (set), Maggie Morgan (costumes) and Thomas J. Munn (lighting).
See www.bellamerlin.com TILLY NO-BODY pages for show DVD, background and photos
Production Team
