Welcome to Cape Coast Castle, Ghana. It is the Year of Return, 2019.
Samuel is our tour guide. It’s his job to give tourists a really really authentic experience of the castle’s dark history, and to do it all with a smile. Good ol’ Samuel!
Orange is a ticket officer. She thinks Samuel needs to get a goddamn life. There has to be more to him beyond these castle walls.
Today is Samuel’s birthday! Happy birth—
“Do you ever want to hurt the tourists Samuel?”
No! They’re his guests, and they’re on a journey of self-discovery. But they’re here, standing on soil, blood and bones, asking for a selfie. They want to buy trinkets from the gift shop.
No. Samuel would never want to hurt the tourists.
And they would never want to hurt him.
A story about Samuel, Orange and their attempts to preserve the past.
Rhianna Illube’s play Samuel Takes a Break… in Male Dungeon No. 5 After a Long but Generally Successful Day of Tours is premiered at The Yard Theatre, London, in February 2024.
