Digital Afterlives: A verbatim theatre expression of research accounts of emergent digital griefscapes

This article reflects on the utilization of verbatim theatre methodologies as a mode of data processing and analysis. It considers the benefits of non-traditional research outputs (NTROs) and the creative expression and dissemination of research data within thanatology research. Set within the context of Aotearoa New Zealand’s culturally informed death cultures, Digital Afterlives: A Verbatim Play about Death in a Digital Age represents a research output that honours the nuance and subjectivity of individual experiences of loss and grief in a digitally mediated world. Constructed entirely from empirical data collected as part of an exploratory qualitative research project, the play imparts the perspectives and experiences of bereaved New Zealanders focusing on the role that digital communication and assets take on in grieving rituals. This article supports the research benefits of staging an interview process that blends individual responses into a mosaic of perspectives on the evolving nature of grief.