KULARTS presents the latest project by “Manai” Alleluia Panis, the world premiere performance for Burden of Proof. 

Inspired by the true story of Pilipina nurses Leonora Perez and Filipina Narciso, who were wrongfully convicted and incarcerated for the 1975 deaths of patients at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, until a judge ordered their release due to the prosecutor’s “overwhelming prejudice.”

Burden of Proof delves into the generational trauma inflicted by the American justice system and how traumatic experiences blur the line between memory and nightmare, told through the lens of the fictional Calinao immigrant family. Original sound score features text drawn from the diary of Leonora Magabo Perez and the writings of her son, Jason Magabo Perez, 2024 San Diego Poet Laureate.

This production is created with funding from the San Francisco Arts Commission, Map Fund, Zellerbach Family Foundation, New England Foundation for the Arts, Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation, California Arts Council, and SF Grants for the Arts.

2026 WORLD PREMIERE
PERFORMANCE DATES

WEEKEND 1:
Friday, April 17 at 7:00 PM
Saturday, April 18 at 7:00 PM
Sunday, April 19 at 3:00 PM

WEEKEND 2:
Friday, April 24 at 7:00 PM
Saturday, April 25 at 7:00 PM
Sunday, April 26 at 3:00 PM

Bindlestiff Studio
185 6th St,
San Francisco, CA 94103

Visit https://www.kularts-sf.org/burden-of-proof to purchase tickets.