In her new book on anaesthesia, journalist Kate Cole-Adams looks at the facts, and explores the enigma of this mysterious medical practice –  interweaving scientific and historical research with personal experience to present a haunting meditation on memory, paralysis and consciousness.

Kate Cole-Adams, Tim McCulloch and Benjamin Law at Belvoir Theatre — Photo: Emily Harms

How common is it for patients to ‘wake up’ during surgery? Is pain still pain if you can’t feel it? And what do we know about consciousness, anyway? In the first of a new series at Sydney's Belvoir Theatre, Cole-Adams broaches these questions and more in a fascinating discussion with anaesthetist Tim McCulloch and host Benjamin Law – opened with a performance from Belvoir's artistic director Eamon Flack.

Presented in partnership with Sydney Writers’ Festival and Belvoir.