美国喜剧演员阿曼达·诺克斯在爱丁堡艺穗节推出的新作《Cartwheel》引发争议。[1]这部作品涉及诺克斯本人曾遭冤枉指控的一桩谋杀案，已招致超过6000人签署请愿书要求取消演出。[1]然而艺穗节组织方和演出场地表示不会因此停演，坚持言论自由原则。[1]
诺克斯于2009年因英国学生梅雷迪思·克彻被杀案件遭定罪，在数年后于2015年被意大利最高法院宣判无罪释放。[1]克彻的妹妹史蒂芬妮表示这部喜剧作品"将针对女性的暴力正常化并轻视化"。[1]诺克斯则在Instagram声明中表示："《Cartwheel》尊重梅雷迪思·克彻的记忆，并揭露了对她和我所施加的暴力。"[1]艺穗节主任托尼·兰克斯特表示："我们不惧怕争议。"[1]
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe has refused to pull a comedy show by American performer Amanda Knox, despite objections from the family of Meredith Kercher, the British student at the center of a high-profile murder case in Italy [1]. Knox's performance, titled "Cartwheel," is being staged at the festival's Gilded Balloon Teviot venue and has drawn criticism for addressing the very case that once led to her wrongful conviction [1]. More than 6,000 people have signed a petition calling for the show's cancellation [1].
Knox, from Seattle, was convicted of Kercher's murder in 2009 but was ultimately exonerated by Italy's highest court in 2015 [1]. Stephanie Kercher, the victim's sister, has objected to the performance, stating that the comedy "normalises and trivialises violence against women" [1]. However, festival organizers have stood firm on their commitment to free expression. Tony Lankester, director of the Fringe Society, declared: "We're not afraid of controversy" [1].
Knox has defended her work through an Instagram statement, asserting: "Cartwheel honours Meredith Kercher's memory and calls out the violence that was done to her and to me" [1]. Rudy Hermann Guede, who was convicted of Kercher's murder in 2008, was released in 2021 [1].