The Madogs of Diego (free performance at SF Fringe Festival)

"The Madogs of Diego" is a play that situates itself at the end of the colonial period, reflecting the consequences for the often forgotten element in the process of decolonization: the people. The action takes place on the island of Diego Garcia, formerly a part of the Mauritian territory, as independence is being negotiated with the British. Through the play's characters, the pubic is invited to witness how the fate of the island's inhabitants, the Chagossians, is decided without their consent.

Both the colonial rulers and the Mauritian independence leaders would jettison the islanders' rights in pursuing their own needs. The British had earmarked the island as a piece of real estate, to rent to the United States for the construction of a military base, simultaneously writing off some outstanding debts. At stake for the Mauritian nationalists were independence and a place in history.

As for the inhabitants of the island, they received dispossession, expulsion, and the systematic destruction of their way of life. The play focuses on their last few days on the island, before they are deported to Mauritius and banished from their land. Their anxieties about the future, and anguish about the imminent destruction of their way of life, are brought to the fore, culminating in their transformation into the madogs (man-dogs).

The Madogs of Diego.
Written and directed by Gaston Valayden.
Performed by Trup Sapsiway from Mauritius.

Sept. 9, Friday, at 10 p.m.
Sept. 10, Saturday, at 5:30 p.m.
Sept. 13, Tuesday, at 8:30 p.m.
Sept. 14, Wednesday, at 7 p.m.
Sept. 17, Saturday, at 4 p.m.
Sept. 18, Sunday, at 5:30 p.m.

EXIT Stage Left.
156 Eddy Street, San Francisco.
415-673-3847.

Free tickets available at the door and online.
http://www.sffringe.org/fringe11/11plays/madogs.html