It is truly a sad day. Late last night Mark Wiel, a great man, playwright, innovator and just fun guy was found beaten to death. I first met seven years ago a local Tashkent event held in his best creation (The Drama School and Ilhom Theater), which was to become a mainstay of my cultural life in Tashkent. I cannot say that Mark and I were close friends, or that I was of his inner circle, but we did have over the years several great conversations, discussion and even share opinions, often involving a contemporary drama comparison between the Black Swan Ashland and Ilhom, or life in general in Uzbekistan. It was through him and the theater that I was able to explore more interesting nuances of Uzbekistan’s politics, history, purpose and sense of self.

Mark was recently the main force behind me taking the leap from academic and technical writing to fiction, providing me cultural historical gems about Samarqand, Bukhara, and Khiva, and being the center of the wheel in Tashkent, connections to other interesting people. Little did I know as we were finalizing an article about the upcoming season at Ilhom at Uzbekistan Today last night would, I find out several hours later that the founder and creator of this great center-piece of innovative drama would be dead. And not from a nice comfortable heart attack, or some freak accident, but beaten to death. To me this foreshadows a rising evil in Tashkent which until recently was place of calm, for Mark was loved by all in Tashkent, - always the faithful son and though in his art played at the fringes of politics and uncomfortable subjects often through humor and the medium of the play, never was threatening in any political, business, social or cultural sense.    

Mark you will be truly missed as a person and as a creator of great inspirations in the people of Tashkent and Uzbekistan – may you be in peace

Current Mood: sad