Croatian play gets Derby première day after supposed Brexit

Published: 23 March 2019
Reporter: Steve Orme

Tina Hofman in Pepper and Honey Credit: Marcus Fernando

Written by a Croatian playwright and performed by a Croatian actor, Pepper and Honey is to have its première at Derby Theatre the day after the UK was due to leave the European Union.

Playwright Kristina Gavran said, “I feel this piece had to be written now because there’s much that divides people at the minute and this piece seeks to do exactly the opposite.

“Leaving and returning, making home away from home and making or breaking traditions isn’t connected only to immigration issues. It’s intrinsic to the world we all know, where people move for work, university and love. However, people are now listening with a lot of anticipation, so I feel it’s time to tell these stories.”

Tina Hofman, artistic director of Notnow Collective who performs in Pepper and Honey, said, “we’re two Croatian women who’ve come to the UK in two very different political periods. We’ve had a very different experience of travel, mobility and immigration.

“Twenty years ago, Croatians needed a visa to enter the UK while after 2013 we were able to enter in the same queue as any EU national. Both of us have committed to making a home and forming strong community bonds here. We’re raising our multicultural families here in the Midlands.

“The questions of what and where is home and our cultural identity are so exciting and alive in our family discussions, with all the riches of our chosen life paths and our children’s complex and exciting heritage.”

Pepper and Honey is a “poignant, subtle and timely play about the journey of change, cultural differences, trying not to feel like a foreigner in your adopted country and the conflict between upholding the traditions of the ‘old country’ and embracing those of the new”.

It will be directed by Tilly Branson and designed by Eleanor Field. Composer is Jovana Backovic.

Pepper and Honey will play the Studio at Derby Theatre on Saturday 30 March and will go on a UK tour later in 2019.

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