We sat down for an exclusive interview with Alba Arikha who’s debut play, Spanish Oranges is directed by Myriam Cyr, starring acclaimed James Bond Actress Maryam D’abo.
This show runs from 11th February to 7th March at The Playground Theatre – Tickets here
What compelled you to set the entire play within a single morning, and how does that compressed timeframe heighten the emotional stakes?
Tension acted in real time (rather than alluded to) always ups the stakes. Spanish Oranges follows the gradual dismantling of a marriage between two artists. What first starts as a game eventually reveals a shocking truth which shall force the couple to reevaluate all they had taken for granted until then.
How does Spanish Oranges interrogate the ethics of turning private relationships into public art?
I think that most artists use their own experience in their work, whether consciously or unconsciously. What matters is how it is presented – with empathy and honesty, as opposed to something more unethical – which the character of Fiona is accused of, an accusation she denies, quoting Jean-Luc Godard: ‘It’s not where you take things from, but where you take them to.’
In a story where success and cancellation sit side by side, what were you most interested in revealing about power within a marriage?
I’m particularly interested in the theme of imbalance: how it affects one personally, but also a couple who happen to be defined by their art. The tilting of power between the main protagonists, Fiona and Ivo, is heightened by the fact that while she’s on the brink of fame, he has lost everything. He wants something which no longer belongs to him and vice versa- who does the truth belong to? Can they recapture love lost?
How did the collaboration between novelist, director and actors shape the balance between confession and fiction on stage?
As a novelist, I’ve often explored the dynamics of a marriage, the pattern of interactions that evolve between a couple, especially the fine line between truth and lies. I became interested in illustrating that same pattern through dialogue rather than prose. How would such a couple navigate that dynamic?. This is my first play, and when I saw the actors act out the dialogue on stage, it made me realise that the text was no longer mine: those spoken words had created something which was beyond my control.
What does the play suggest about who controls the narrative when love, ambition and reputation collide?
Collisions are usually the result of a loss of control, a heightened narrative. Each person holds on to their story, their truth, until it can no longer be sustained. In this play, the fragility of love threatens to crash when the truth emerges.
What do you hope audiences leave questioning about the cost of artistic success—particularly when it’s shared unevenly?
The play is about a 21st century marriage: the boundaries between public and private, success and failure, shame and ambition, the fragility of love. it also explores what it takes to create, the conflict between motherhood and art, the clash between two talented egos. How and can one pick oneself up after a fall? If so, what are the consequences?