Forever Alive: Natalia’s story to be told in London show
“I had never heard of SUDEP, nor had my friends, nor Natalia’s mum. No doctors had mentioned it."
Drama student Lilianna Bulat has written a stage play ‘Forever Alive’ in memory of her close friend Natalia, who died from SUDEP last year. A cast of eight will perform the play in London at University Square Stratford (Studio Two, third floor) on Thursday 14th May (7pm).
Lilianna is a third year student at the University of East London. She says Natalia’s mother is planning to come to England from her home in Germany to see the performance. Lilianna explained: “Through this piece I want to tell the story of Natalia’s life, her warmth, and her strength but also to raise awareness about epilepsy and how people can help those who experience seizures. A big part of my motivation is to educate audiences about what to do when someone has a seizure, and about the existence of SUDEP, which is something few people know anything about.”
Natalia grew up in Poland and had her first seizure in 2011, when she was 11. It came out of the blue when she collapsed and lost consciousness in school. She was sat on a bench, laughing and talking with friends, at the time. Medication controlled her seizures effectively and she didn’t have another one in 18 months. When she was 13, she moved with her mother to Germany, where she was put on different medication and her seizures became more frequent and less well controlled.
It was in Germany, where Lilianna met and became friends with Natalia. She said: “When I was getting to know Natalia, she casually mentioned she had epilepsy. I was shocked but didn’t want her to think I was treating her differently so just carried on. If she came for a sleepover her mum explained to me what to do if she had a seizure, but I never saw her have one.”
Lilliana moved to England in 2019 and began studying drama in 2023. She stayed in close touch with her friend – they would speak or text every day, and when Lilliana went back to Germany they would always meet up.
Lilianna was devastated when she received a text message from another friend in May 2025, telling her Natalia had died of SUDEP. “I had never heard of SUDEP, nor had my friends, nor Natalia’s mum. No doctors had mentioned it. When she passed I started reading up about it, wanting to find out more. It hit me hard.”
Lilianna’s upcoming play, which she is also directing, is about personal experiences, friendship and epilepsy. It’s a theatrical piece, incorporating some video footage, which uses metaphors of epilepsy, portraying the condition not as a villain, but as a shadow that follows Natalia.
The play will be performed to the public, for free. At the end of the play, each cast member will say something about epilepsy and there will be an original song – produced for the play – performed at the close. Lilianna also plans to include information about SUDEP Action in the play and programme and give out charity leaflets to the audience after the show.
Entry to the play is free and open to the public – however, audience members not from the university will need to book a free ticket via Eventbrite here.
