Stephanie Kercher, sister of murdered British student Meredith Kercher, has publicly urged Amanda Knox to cancel her upcoming Edinburgh Fringe comedy show, "Cartwheel." Knox, who was controversially convicted and later acquitted of Kercher's 2007 murder in Italy, is scheduled to begin an 11-night run of the show on Friday.
Stephanie Kercher stated she "could not fathom" how the murder of her sister could be the subject of a comedy gig. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, she emphasized that Meredith would not find her death "of comedy value" and implored Knox to consider the "immense" pain her family has endured for nearly two decades. "Meredith absolutely wouldn't find these topics of any comedy value," Stephanie Kercher said.
Knox has defended the show, stating it is about her experiences and how she will explain her past to her two children. She previously suggested Meredith would have found the show humorous. The Edinburgh Fringe website indicates that all tickets for the 11-night run have already sold out.
A petition initiated by Sally Alington, a friend of the Kercher family, has garnered over 3,500 signatures, calling for the venue and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to withdraw the show. The petition claims that "Cartwheel," described as a stand-up comedy with adult themes, turns the rape and murder of Meredith Kercher into entertainment. Alington criticized the performance as "distasteful and disrespectful," arguing it "normalises and trivialises violence against women."
Meredith Kercher, 21, was found stabbed to death in the Perugia apartment she shared with Knox in November 2007. Knox and her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were convicted of the murder in 2009 and sentenced to prison, but were later freed on appeal. Rudy Guede was convicted separately for the killing. Italy's Supreme Court ultimately acquitted Knox in 2015.
A spokesperson for Knox defended the performance, asserting that the petition makes "false assumptions and mischaracterises the show." The spokesperson added that "Cartwheel" honors Meredith Kercher's memory and is about motherhood and raising a daughter in a dangerous world. The venue, Gilded Balloon, stated that as an open-access festival, they provide a platform for a "wide range of voices" in line with freedom of expression, and that artists are responsible for their own work. The show is described as a one-woman piece exploring themes of motherhood, presented independently by Knox.