The day Eduardo Mondlane met Olof Palme: Henning Mankell’s ‘A Simple Lunch in Vällingby’ launched in Maputo

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The day Eduardo Mondlane met Olof Palme: Henning Mankell’s ‘A Simple Lunch in Vällingby’ launched in Maputo

7:43 CAT | 10 Jun 2021

Image: O País

An audio play called ‘A Simple Lunch in Vällingby,’ by Swedish writer Henning Mankell, who lived and worked in Mozambique, was launched in Maputo on Tuesday (8 June) at an evening reception hosted by the Swedish Ambassador to Mozambique, Mette Sunnergren.

Eduardo Mondlane visited Sweden on five occasions between September 1964 and October 1967, seeking support for Frelimo, which at the time was fighting against Portuguese colonial domination.

On one of those trips to Stockholm, Mondlane met the Swedish prime minister away from the spotlight at the latter’s house in Vällingby. As a note from the Swedish Embassy recalls, many important political discussions took place in Palme’s kitchen in the suburb west of the capital Stockholm as he prepared lunch for his guests (sausages and chips), including then Frelimo president Mondane.

This little-publicised episode inspired Henning Mankell to write ‘En enkel lunch i Vällingby’ [ ‘A Simple Lunch at Vällingby]’.

“By translating the play into Portuguese and broadcasting it in Mozambique,” Ambassador Sunnergren said, “the Swedish Embassy seeks to highlight the history that our two countries share, which is deeply linked to the universal values of human rights, democracy, freedom of expression and education.”

In the Mutumbela Gogo version, Henning Mankell’s text, translated by Solveig Nordlund, is interpreted by actors Jorge Vaz, in the role of Eduardo Mondlane, and Adelino Branquinho, in the role of Olof Palme. The 39-minute play was directed by Manuela Soeiro, and the credits also include Julieta Mussanhane (narrator) and Samo Elias (sound and editing).

‘A Simple Lunch in Vällingby’ is the result of a partnership between the Swedish Embassy in Mozambique, Teatro Avenida and Rádio Moçambique. The play was released in Maputo on Swedish National Day, June 6, and will be broadcast nationally, soon.

Among those invited to the launch were Minister of Culture and Tourism Eldevina Materula, Dean of Eduardo University Orlando Quilambo, and various journalists and actors.

By José dos Remedios

Source: O País