40 Dei - Tues 31st March

Even better run through today. Time to stop for a few days. Told Betio we were going to go with Albert as the sole Matthew .He took it very well and went round being very busy making sure everyone was in position for the run through. He promptly fell over back stage and twisted his knee and has 2 days sick leave.

Titus had a stitch in his gum following the tooth removals and has developed a slight lisp as the tongue has no teeth to brush against. His performance in the circumstances was heroic. Albert too had spent most of the night in the mortuary with the family of the boy beaten to death. Apparently he had a big hole in the side of his head where he had been beaten with a piece of wood. I try to imagine this kind of blood lust. I can just about get as far as shooting him in both legs as he comes out of the house if I were a harassed officer having my whole life disrupted by seeking out escaped prisoners, but then driving him up to the camp to beat him is just beyond my comprehension.

So when these two, Titus and Albert, stagger into the final scene where Titus visits Albert in prison, they both looked utterly exhausted and a few lines go. But the backstories of the lives going on during these weeks plus the topicality of the play seems to add to the intensity. For the first time in 20 years I find myself hoping not too many small kids come along with parents to watch it.But that's almost impossible to achieve here. They will be restless and giggle when you don't want them too but it is just part of the Vanuatu theatre scene.