Au pied du grillage pousse un oranger
(At the foot of the fence grows an orange tree) Book not yet available in English
Summary:
Marty recently moved to a country village to live with his grandmother. On the other side of the hills is “The Centre”, surrounded by a fence topped with barbed wire. There, Marty meets Emma, who lives behind the terrifying fence. She is growing an orange tree by it. Marty goes every day to hear Emma sing a wordless song to help the tree grow. He eventually tells his new friend why he no longer lives with his parents: Marty was born Martine, and only his grandmother accepts his new identity. The two friends decide to run away together, but are caught by the police and taken to a new camp, with a high wall.
Edited by: Université Sorbonne Paris Nord
Comment:
A short play featuring three characters, Emma and Marty, who are both fourteen, and Marty’s grandmother GranMa. The writing is poignant and remarkable for its simplicity and the strong imagery woven through the text. The three characters are all touching in their own way, particularly the two children who run away together, uniting their solitudes. A poignant, deeply original play on exclusion, exile, and friendship, combining tragedy and absurdist humour with panache.