Tenerife's "Take Off" Play on Air Disaster Adds Shows
Due to overwhelming demand, Auditorio de Tenerife has added two new shows for the popular play "Take off (None of this should have happened)," which sensitively explores the 1977 Los Rodeos air disaster.
Because the play ‘Take off (None of this should have happened)’ has been so popular, Auditorio de Tenerife, which produced it, has added two more shows. The cultural center in Tenerife said that all tickets for the first seven shows sold out two weeks early, showing how much the public wanted to see it.
The play, created and directed by writer José Padilla, deals with one of the biggest tragedies in Tenerife's history, an event that affected people worldwide. Padilla designed the play to be a deep and artistic look at the Los Rodeos air disaster. This accident happened on March 27, 1977, and is still the deadliest in aviation history, killing 583 people.
The author explained that the play avoids being sensational or showing pain directly. Instead, it aims to be extremely delicate and respectful to those affected, telling the story with the sensitivity and beauty a tragedy of this size needs.
Padilla said this event has been a "legend" on the island since he was a child. His interest in it was unexpectedly reignited when he saw a reference to the Los Rodeos accident in an episode of 'Breaking Bad'. This made him want to create his own take on the event, which, though local, left a lasting mark on a generation and is known around the world.
The story of ‘Take off’ involves more than twenty characters. It doesn't focus on the victims, but instead examines the outside factors and situations that led to the tragic accident. The play explores how international and national tensions, along with economic decisions, all connected to influence what happened. It shows how something that seems random can actually be part of a complex system already in place.
This play was developed thanks to ‘La Salita’, a creative space run by the Cabildo de Tenerife and Auditorio de Tenerife. It supports artists and theatrical projects. Both José Carlos Acha, the island's Minister of Culture, and José Luis Rivero, the Auditorium's artistic director, have praised the center for encouraging research and creativity, which gave the project the artistic freedom it needed.
The extensive research behind the play will be turned into a book, to be published by Antígona. Also, national and international theater organizers have already shown interest, suggesting that ‘Take off’ – the first project from ‘La Salita’ – might tour outside the Canary Islands.
Tickets for the two new shows go on sale this Wednesday at 10:00 AM.