Pepper and Honey is a play about home, memory and longing – but also about belonging.
It looks at the geographically fractured relationship of Ana, newly-arrived in Britain from her native Croatia, and her grandmother who is yearning for her to return.
Presented by the Notnow Collectiove, the play packs a lot into its relatively short span.
Both parts are played by Tina Hofman. It was written by Kristina Gavran and directed by Tilly Branson.
The setting is a kitchen, where each character relates their side of the story in short but dynamic vignettes, with the differences between the two family members being shown through body language and the brightness of their clothes.
Ana has come to Britain wanting a life and opportunities that she would have otherwise have missed out on. But her grandmother misses her and worries that in having to settle to a land of different values, languages and behaviour she will lose something of her early upbringing.
She makes biscuits with pepper and honey, a Croatian belief that the more pepper is in the biscuits, the faster your loved ones will return.
There is even time for audience participation, when three people are called up help with the preparation of the biscuits. Although this element cuts the tension of the play, it also helps to re-establish food as being an important part in life and in bonding generations and families together.
As Ana navigates a land where she isn’t always welcome, where everything is confusing, her grandmother sends her the biscuits and eventually the recipe, so that she can keep an element of her childhood as she faces the challenges of adulthood.