Today is a special day. Excluding Felix and Arlete, all the others: Ana Bela, Safina, the two Adelinos, Agostinho, are all from Palma. And today they will be acting in Palma, their home.

I’m worried about how nervous they’ll be, I tell them the audience will be there for them, it won’t be hostile, won’t judge, the people will have come just to enjoy the performance that has been talked about so much.

Today, together with Eni, there was also a press conference and Adelino (Cuba) took part, too!

I let them eat while I prepare the scenery. I tell Felix to give them a little “motivaçao”, even though I don’t even know if the work exists in Portuguese. But Felix understands.

Well, this even there were less enthusiastic tones, the performance went well but 1,000/1,500 people in the audience were missing.

I thought that Palma, the biggest centre in the area, would have brought 2,000 people, instead only 500 came, maybe 600. Even the actors realised, Adelino Cuba started called for people from the microphone, Oliviero (at the speakers) played music. We wanted to fill that square, Palma’s central square, but today we didn’t.

The 600 people that were present, though, enjoyed themselves, they laughed, no-one left.

I take this occasion to note something: in these areas of Mozambique, in the northern villages, audiences don’t applaud.

One of the group told me that here no-one claps, the sign that your presentation is being appreciated is the fact that no-one leaves and no-one talks badly. And until now, none of them have happened.

Tomorrow Olumbe, the last performance.

Today’s heroine is Arlete. She’s from Maputo, she doesn’t speak Swahili but she’s an actress and during these last months, and in Italy too, she was a fundamental support for the other actresses, Ana Bela and Safina. Arlete plays the part of the obstetrician, and she memorised the lines in Swahili. She’s a good actress, she smiles, she’s delicate, elegant, she accompanies the two women during the ultrasound and helps the “real” doctor of the performance. She uses few words, but uses them well.

You need courage to expose yourself like this, and she has all my respect.