The Hay 30 – Eric NGALLE CHARLES

A performance of the new one-man play by the Cameroon-born playwright and actor, now a Creative Wales Fellow, is followed by a conversation with Owen Sheers about the work and Charles’ extraordinary life. The Last Ritual is based on the author’s last days in the village of Small Soppo in Buea, Cameroon. It looks at love and ultimate betrayal, exploring the theme of witchcraft and the practice of it.

We celebrate the extraordinary autobiography of the Wales-based playwright and poet. Eric Ngalle thought he was leaving Cameroon for a better life... Instead of arriving in Belgium to study for a degree in economics he ended up in one of the last countries he would have chosen to visit - Russia. Having seen his passport stolen, Eric endured nearly two years battling a hostile environment as an illegal immigrant while struggling with the betrayal that tore his family apart and prompted his exit. This painfully honest and often brutal account of being trapped in a subculture of deceit and crime gives a rare glimpse behind the headlines of a global concern.

Deep in a forest, a hunter comes across a skull, he steps on the skull and the skull speaks saying, “My mouth brought me here”. Based on an African proverb, the piece features a power-hungry rule, a wise sage and a courageous hunter. In a world where telling the truth has become a game, no one knows the rules. This is a rare chance to hear Eric narrate his poetry in a solo production of the piece. The production is brought to life with live music and enchanting story telling. Directed by Peter Scott for 3 Crate Productions and written by Eric Ngalle Charles. Following the show, Ngalle will talk to Owen Sheers.

In association with PEN Cymru Wales

Are those not dark shadows lurking inside the house I once called home? “From attempting mass murder against my father’s family in the village of Small Soppo, Buea, in Cameroon, to becoming a victim of human trafficking; from living and barely surviving the streets of Moscow, to strip dancing, and buying and selling fake dollars…” A riveting and deeply moving play based on true events shaped from the life of the writer Eric Ngalle Charles, recipient of a Creative Wales Award. Directed by Bafta winner Greg Lewis.

The focus of the PEN chapter this year is to defend and support minority languages within ethnic communities in Wales. When we are given the confidence and liberty to speak for ourselves in our mother tongues as much as in our acquired speech, we demonstrate the diversity, persistence and vitality of language. Three Welsh and three refugee writers are here to speak for themselves and to invite you into the local and global PEN alliance of writers working to promote international freedom of expression and linguistic equality.

Join poet Eric Ngalle Charles and artist Nicky Arscott for a unique art workshop experimenting with words and pictures, and exploring identity, language and storytelling to create your own personal poetry comic.