Fata Morgana: A WWII Radio Drama of Refugees, Spies, and Hidden Identities

Wartime Voyage to America

• 🚢 The story unfolds on the steamer Fata Morgana on December 7, 1941, transporting European refugees from Casablanca, Morocco, to America.
• 🌍 Casablanca is depicted as a strategically important port in a French protectorate, a "puppet theater" under a "mad hypnotist," serving as the last port for ships to the free world.
• ⚠️ The Fata Morgana is held in quarantine/isolation due to fears of uncontrolled movement of refugees and spies, facing a precarious journey through waters ploughed by submarines.

Passengers and Hidden Identities

• 🎭 The narrative focuses on four main characters: Mrs. Hana (an intellectual), a meticulously dressed café gent, Mr. Singer (diligent and respectful), and Miss Olinka, who appears to be an agent.
• 🕵️‍♀️ Miss Olinka is observed listening to the telegraph and making notes, suggesting a secretive role or involvement in espionage.
• 💬 Mr. Singer, initially perceived as a quiet gentleman, later reveals he is not Jewish, not circumcised, and is a deserter of German/Lusatian Serb descent, fearing communists and the Gestapo.

Desperate Measures and Shifting Plans

• 💡 Olinka devises a plan for Mr. Singer to use the papers of a recently deceased passenger, Mr. Vajs, who had an American visa, requiring the disposal of the body.
• 🕊️ Mrs. Hana reveals her own husband, a famous writer, is not dead but abandoned her for a new muse, detailing her uncredited work as his assistant and her disillusionment.
• 🎭 Mr. Singer contemplates starting a new life under the name "Nobody" in America, inspired by a story of a count swimming naked to shore at the Statue of Liberty.

The Fate of the Excalibur

• 🚢 News circulates about the ocean liner Excalibur, which sailed from Casablanca 14 days prior, being lost at sea.
• 🚨 Later, it's revealed the Germans detained the Excalibur, seizing the ship and sending it back to Marseille, with passengers ending up in camps.
• 🤫 This information is kept secret from Mrs. Hana, whose real husband was believed to be on the Excalibur.

A New Beginning Amidst Chaos

• 🌊 Mr. Singer is "found" overboard and declared a suicide, a narrative Olinka helps construct to facilitate the Fata Morgana's departure.
• 📄 Olinka uses Mrs. Hana's real husband's passport (Mr. Singer's true identity) to convince authorities, leading to the ship receiving orders to sail.
• 🚀 The Fata Morgana sets sail into wartime waters, with news of the Japanese invading America, highlighting the pervasive global conflict and uncertainty.