In 2009, journalist Sarah Shourd was falsely imprisoned in Iran’s infamous Evin Prison on suspicion of espionage. Since her release in 2010, her journalism has reflected her tireless advocacy for prison reform and the rights of prisoners. In 2016, she ventured into playwriting with “The Box,” which premiered at Z Space in San Francisco. The critically acclaimed play is based on Shourd’s three-year investigation into the effects of solitary confinement on U.S. prisoners. A newly worked version of “The Box” is the centerpiece of the Pulitzer Center’s “End of Isolation Tour,” a pandemic-inspired project highlighting the damaging repercussions of solitary confinement and the American prison industrial complex. It will be performed at Marin Shakespeare Company’s outdoor amphitheater in San Rafael in September.
