Jose Padilla’s Play on 1977 Los Rodeos Air Disaster Comes to Madrid’s Nave 10
Jose Padilla’s play Take off (None of this should have happened), a sensitive exploration of the 1977 Los Rodeos air disaster, runs at Madrid’s Nave 10 at Matadero from November 5 to 15.
The play Take off (None of this should have happened) is coming to Madrid’s Nave 10 at Matadero from November 5 to 15. Written and directed by Tenerife native Jose Padilla, the production serves as a powerful exercise in historical memory, focusing on the 1977 Los Rodeos air disaster—a tragedy that claimed 583 lives and fundamentally changed international aviation safety.
Produced by Estudio Príamo in collaboration with the Auditorio de Tenerife and En Verde Producciones, the play first premiered in the Canary Islands this past March. The cast—Almudena Puyo, Carlota Gaviño, Kevin de la Rosa, and Lucía Trentini—faces the difficult task of portraying such a traumatic event. Padilla has been careful to avoid sensationalism, prioritizing sensitivity and historical accuracy to honor the victims.
For Padilla, writing and directing the play himself was essential. He believes that a script only truly comes to life during rehearsals, where the actors' input allows the story to evolve. He views this collaborative, fluid nature of theater as its greatest strength compared to more static art forms.
Ultimately, the production is designed to challenge the audience. In an era defined by fast-paced, fragmented media, Padilla sees theater as a vital space for collective reflection. Rather than offering simple answers, the play invites the public to engage with the story, treating the act of attending a performance as a form of resistance against modern-day passivity.