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When a group of English people are kidnapped by pirates there's only one way to survive - by entertaining their captors... This is the dilemma facing a group of seventeenth century country folk in Entertaining Morocco. The play investigates the fate of thousands of British people who were captured by pirates during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and sold in North Africa. Surprisingly a great many of them carved out successful lives for themselves in the Orient and embraced the beliefs and cultures of Islam. On occasion when Britain did pay the hefty ransom demanded by the captors, hostages often refused to return to their homeland preferring to stay in their new environment. Entertaining Morocco looks at how these simple British folk coped with their new lives and how they developed their own unique way of entertaining their captors. As well as drawing on traditional British forms of entertainment, the hostages quickly introduced elements of Islam within their routines. Entertaining Morocco explores how both cultures embraced each other in a rich and colourful mix of music, dance and acrobatics.

Creatives/Company

Author: Alison Atkinson