Warning: This article contains details some may find distressing.
An actor tragically lost his life after unintentionally hanging himself during a live theater performance.
In 2016, Italian actor Raphael Schumacher was performing in a production of Mirages at the Teatro Lux in Pisa, Italy, when the devastating incident occurred.
According to The Guardian, Mirages is an experimental six-scene production staged in different parts of the theater, with audience members walking between them.
Schumacher's ill-fated act took place in the courtyard of the theater, where he was reciting a monologue from Frank Wedekind’s Spring Awakening alone in front of just one spectator. The performance ended with the actor placing his head in a noose.
The late actor was discovered by a spectator - a female medical graduate - who saw him wearing a mask for the scene. She quickly rushed to his side and loosened the noose after realizing something was wrong. With the help of another spectator, she then lowered Schumacher to the ground.
Schumacher was taken to a nearby hospital and ended up in a coma as a result of the incident. He was later declared brain dead after his deteriorating condition saw no response to treatment.
The BBC reported that following a six-hour procedure, the hospital issued a statement: "The family and the prosecutor’s office have both authorized that his organs be donated, but their removal will be subject to a medical assessment to be performed in the course of the night."
It has been reported that the actor changed the ending of the scene by placing his head in a noose instead of using a gun. The directors of the theater company told the Italian newspaper Il Giorno: "The original monologue included a fake gunshot but he eventually decided for the hanging – without telling us."
While it is assumed that the incident was accidental, an investigation was launched into the theater's safety regulations. That investigation moved from grievous bodily harm to culpable homicide, or manslaughter, according to the BBC.
The actor's grieving mother, from Como, northern Italy, denied the theory explored by authorities that her son may have tried to end his own life. She said: "My son recently lost his father and had ended a relationship but had found his serenity again," adding: "He didn't leave a suicide note and had no reason to kill himself."
The theater's art director, Gabriele De Luca, opened up about the horrific incident to the Daily Mail, sharing: "We are shocked. No one, not even us, understands how this happened and it will be up to the police to shed light on it."
Italian news agency ANSA had reported that four people were investigated for manslaughter in connection with the heartbreaking incident, but it's unclear if any arrests were made.
