Videos: The Masculine Side of Grief Lesson 5

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. ‘My sister was murdered nearly a decade ago and I can’t shut up about it’, is how Rebecca Peyton begins this moving, and sometimes, humorous, talk. Making art from trauma is not uncommon, but Rebecca’s openness about the isolation of grief is rare. She firmly believes that ‘you can dis-empower something by naming it’, that sharing is empowering and that we are not helpless.

Within hours of her sister being murdered, Rebecca knew she wanted to make a show about her loss – and about Kate, shot while working as a journalist in Somalia. Their father’s death when they were small meant that death was always named, discussed and laughed about; and through collaboration with Martin Bartelt, ‘Sometimes I Laugh Like My Sister’ was born. An actor and writer, Rebecca has performed this one-woman show across the UK, Europe and South Africa. She believes that we should be allowed to say anything, though not required to say everything. ‘SILLMS’ has strengthened that belief, opening doors into people’s stories and hearts, liberating teller and listener alike. Follow her @rebeccapeyton