Desdemona's story

Thank you! Let's keep going!

Thank you to the generous support of everyone who has made a donation so far! I am so grateful for you and encouraged by you! Because of this, I have decided to increase my fundraising target from $500 to $750 and aim to help even more families who are experiencing DFV.

I can't quite believe our season of Othello came to an end a few days ago (which felt much too soon!) but I'm looking forward to seeing how Desdemona's story continues to start conversations and prompt action.

xxx Eloise

Othello, August 2022

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for coming to see Othello. I am so grateful to have been able to share this story with you.

I have had the privilege of telling Desdemona's story, but I would also like to amplify the voices of those who are actually experiencing domestic and family violence today. By telling stories like this, I hope we may raise awareness, raise compassion, and take action to make real change.

In Australia, 1 in 6 women and 1 in 16 men have experienced violence by an intimate partner (AIHW, 2018).

I may have died onstage 9 times in our week of shows, but every week of the year (on average), 1 woman is killed by a current or former partner, and every month, 1 man is killed by a current or former partner (AIHW, 2018).

Domestic and family violence is one of the main drivers of homelessness.

I would like to encourage you to learn more about domestic and family violence (this is a good place to start: https://www.missionaustralia.com.au/domestic-and-family-violence), tell others and, if you have the means, to donate funds or goods to a charity that seeks to prevent domestic violence and/or support and restore the victims thereof, such as Catherine House, the Salvation Army, and Mission Australia.

I have set up this fundraising page (I accidentally picked the birthday fundraiser! Whoops!) as just one way you might like to go about this - but there are many many other possibilities. Every amount makes a difference, no matter how small, but you might like to use the following as a guide:

$25 can provide families who have fled violent homes with regular groceries, household items and essential goods.

$45 can help provide crisis accommodation for children and families fleeing violence.

$65 can help families access ongoing counselling and essential support to break the cycle of homelessness.

Please share this page with others who may be interested.

Thank you, again, for supporting theatre. Let's keep telling and listening to each other's stories.

Bless you.

xxx Eloise