Ben Okri: Madame Sosostris & the Festival for the Broken-Hearted [2026]

'[A] whimsical tale of transformation... magic is essential, and Okri can spin it.' Guardian
'Full of rich hallucinatory imagery and enjoyably vibrant symbolism' Irish Times
Hearts will be healed and hearts broken, but no one will leave this festival as they arrived...
Viv has turned heartbreak into spectacle: a one-night-only masked festival at a French chateau, marking the anniversary of her first husband's departure. Guests roam the moonlit woods in search of reinvention, all waiting for Madame Sosostris, the elusive clairvoyant of The Waste Land, rumoured to appear after decades in hiding.
But as midnight nears, disguises slip, emotions ignite and Viv's carefully planned celebration begins to unravel.
Enchanting and unsettling, this midsummer tale explores love, illusion and the strange transformations of a single night.