1154 Days at Arts House

1154 Days is a world premiere live performance by journalist Cheng Lei, directed by Emma Valente and Clyde White, premiering at Arts House in the North Melbourne Town Hall. In August 2020, Lei was detained by Chinese state security officers and held for 1154 days, cut off from her children, family, and the outside world. Blending storytelling with live-cinematic theatre and multi-camera projection, the work draws on Lei's firsthand experience to offer a rare window into Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL), exploring how the mind adapts, resists, and creates under extreme isolation. Performed by Lei herself, the work threads moments of warmth and dark humour through a story of resilience, connection, and the meaning of everyday freedom.