Kika Hamaoui’s new play I have a flight to Frankfurt at half past ten, is on a Voila! Festival next month, performed by Fernanda Peviani.
“Clara is in her bedroom, the departure point for her escape route. Immediately becoming her confidantes, we are told she makes up stories, and must tell them to survive. Through poetry, music and humour, we are swayed into strange scenarios, tales of Love in personified form, and profound reflections on death.
The play explores the complex nature of love and belonging on the face of migration. Performed by a bilingual actor, it retains the rhythms of the Portuguese language, enhanced by projection and physicality. I have a flight… embodies what happens inside a chaotic and imaginative mind on the cusp of life-changing events.”
Where: Etcetera Theatre
When: 21-23 Nov
Ticket link: https://www.voilafestival.co.uk/events/i-have-a-flight-to-frankfurt-at-half-past-ten/
Kika tells us more about the show.
Tell me a bit about your show. Where did the idea come from?
The play tells the story of Clara in a dreamlike format that even plays with different states of consciousness – fear, nightmare, plans.
Clara is running away from love, which appears in the play as a personified figure, and the only thing we know for sure is that she has a flight to Frankfurt at half past ten.
Everything else might be invented. The piece also brings a lot of Brazilian culture into its songs, setting, and way of speaking.
Why should audiences choose your show? How would you sell it in one sentence?
Because it’s a play about escape. And we are always running away from something.
And because it’s a play about love. We are always, inevitably, in love with something.
And that is perhaps the greatest paradox of life.
What does being part of the Voila! Festival mean to you?
It means a lot. This is my first play presented internationally, which shows that the flight has taken off and the journey has begun.
The Voilà! Festival itself is a journey — bringing voices from around the world into the fertile and imaginative territory of theatre. Having my play featured in this event is a huge accomplishment.
Alongside Fernanda Peviani, a Brazilian actress, and Rute Costa, a Portuguese director – both award-winning artists – it’s about seeing the Portuguese language connecting talents and giving voice to the unspeakable.
How did you make a start in the industry?
I’ve always been a writer, even when I wasn’t writing – and I still am, even when I’m not. Coincidentally, though, I do it quite often.
I started my teenage years publishing a novel, and since then there have been four books and a graphic novel.
In Brazil, I created a play called Quando Vier a Primavera (When Spring Comes), which was a great success with audiences.
I’ve been working as a screenwriter for over ten years, having collaborated with some of the most prominent TV channels and media companies in Brazil.
But theatre is a voice that gently screams to those willing to listen – and it’s an honour to be part of that conversation.
What’s next for the show?
We plan to continue taking the show to other festivals and are always looking for collaborative spaces that would like to host us. We intend to keep traveling!