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Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz
Directed by Juliet Male
Performances: Tuesday 6th – Saturday 10th November 2007, Bell Theatre
View pictures here
In the late 1920s, in Florida and Cuba, teams of workers hand rolled cigars in factories. Some worked in large factories, others formed small family groups. The workers were entertained by "lectors" who read to them as they crafted each cigar. The lectors were paid for by the employees, not by the factory owners, and they read from the world's great classics. The cigar makers often could not read or write but they could quote passages from Don Quixote or Jane Eyre. Anna in the Tropics is the story of one family listening to Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, whilst they roll cigars. The story weaves its way into their lives reminding them of previous pain, filling their heads with dreams and arousing unexpected passion. The play has all the colour, humour and volatile emotions we associate with Latin America, whilst the poetry of the language adds magic and a timeless quality.
The play was a Pulitzer Prize winner in 2003. It is both a story about an affectionate, working family and an echo from an earlier culture. The play is rooted in traditional South American ceremonies of communion with the gods and sacrifice. The original cigar making process was part of a religious ceremony which allowed the Taino Indians to speak with their gods. The lector is a direct descendant of the priest who led these ceremonies. And there are still lectors today, reading to workers as they hand roll cigars in Cuba.
The play is nicely balanced between moments of farce and a darker mood of frustrated passion. This is all woven together by the cigar making process, which the company has studied in detail. You will not see cigars made on stage but you will see some of the process by which the fragrant leaves are turned into cigars. These cigars currently retail at prices well over thirty pounds each! Learning the process has been a challenge but it has given us a vivid insight into a different culture. We are indebted to C. Gars Ltd., who provided a great deal of background information as well as some or our props.
The cast is a good mix of established SLT members: Anita Sollis, John Hartnett, Peter Medd and David Chaisty, and newer people like Alex Kapila, Catherine Ellis, Jamie Clapperton and James Hough. We have a strong backstage team led by Jane Moorhead, with Linda East and Jenny Senior. Gareth Barker and Brian Fretwell are responsible for the lighting design and sound plots. Alan Buckman is our set designer.
This has been above all a “company” production. Come and see this unique play and enjoy the experience as much as we have done.
One cigar will be smoked on stage during performance.
For more details, please contact Juliet Male Director
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