Tonight, a stranger calls. For Paulina Salas, his voice triggers a memory she has long tried to suppress. Through months in captivity under a brutal regime, she never saw her kidnapper’s face, but she heard his voice, calm yet menacing. A voice she will never forget. When her husband invites a stranger to their isolated beach house, she hears that voice again…

Written in the wake of the Pinochet regime in Chile, Death and the Maiden boldly explores the complexities of truth, memory and the morality of retribution. Today, the story still resonates strongly as we watch dictatorships crumble across our world.

Following the critical success of Masquerade Theatre Company’s production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, under his direction at Teatru Manoel, director Stephen Oliver commented:

Explores revenge, trauma and forgiveness

“This thrilling play is a riveting, haunting play that explores revenge, trauma and forgiveness and has proved a stunning challenge for all the cast. The psychological twists and turns have had us all working long rehearsals and the play deals with some challenging and difficult themes – torture, betrayal and the repression of painful memories, to name but a few... The cast have each taken on the challenges of this play and risen to them.

Sharon Bezzina and Steffan Cheriet Busuttil.

“There are also some unexpectedly, lighter moments, and we’ve worked hard to bring these out too. So people can expect some points at which they may laugh, as well as being gripped by the events that change a couple’s lives forever.”

Death and the Maiden is directed by Stephen Oliver. The cast is made up of Sharon Bezzina (Children of a Lesser God, Pretty Lisa) as Paulina Salas, Steffan Cheriet Busuttil (Festen, Rock of Ages) as Gerardo Escobar and Victor Debono (Noises Off, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest) as Roberto Miranda.

The play runs on October 21, 22, 28, 29 and 30 October at 8pm at Blue Box, M Space, Msida. Tickets are available online or by calling on 7979 3737 or 2124 6619. Classification 16+.

www.bluebox.com.mt