As the centenary year of the death of Franz Kafka draws to a close, we uplift the overlooked idea of community in the iconic writing of one of literature’s most creative voices. Regularly reading his work aloud to friends and family, and attending "Rezitationen" (recitals), Kafka's love of this hybrid acoustic form is well documented. In tribute to his diary entries on the power of the voice, join us to hear Dame Kristin Scott Thomas read aloud a sequence of unforgettable short stories selected from Kafka’s archive – alternately funny and absurd; bizarre and troubling; captivating and unsettling.
The research for this event is supported by the AHRC-funded “Kafka's Transformative Communities” project at the Oxford Kafka Research Centre in collaboration with Bold Tendencies, a not-for-profit arts organisation based in the rooftop spaces at Peckham Multi-Storey Car Park in South London. The first performance took place at Bold Tendencies on 3 July 2024, Kafka’s birthday, under the title ‘Kafka Deep Cuts.’
Dame Kristin Scott Thomas DBE is a British-French actor. A five-time BAFTA Award and Olivier Award nominee, she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Four Weddings and a Funeral, and the Olivier Award for Best Actress for the Royal Court revival of The Seagull. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for The English Patient. She has played memorable roles in Slow Horses (2023), Sally Potter's The Party (2017) Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag (2016), Catherine Corisini's Leaving (Partir) (2009), and Philippe Claudel's I've Loved You So Long (Il y a longtemps que je t'aime) by Philippe Claudel (2008); and on the stage in Elektra (2014) and Harold Pinter’s Old Times (2013) and Betrayal (2008).
Last year Kristin starred in LYONESSE, Penelope Skinner’s new play, along side Lily James. She also completed work on her directorial debut My Mother’s Wedding. She has recently been seen in the fourth series of Slow Horses.
Booking here: Of Children, Animals, and Hunger Artists: Kristin Scott Thomas reads Kafka | University of Oxford (oxforduniversitystores.co.uk)
