Dario Fo
Dario Fo was born on the 24th March 1926 in Varese, Italy. He is a well-known comedian, singer, theatre-director, political campaigner and playwright, much of his work is performed and he is said to be "arguably the most widely performed contemporary playwright in world theatre". The majority of his plays consisted of improvisations and the recovery of prohibited forms of theatre and the ancient Italian style of commedia dell'arte. Fo had been equipped with an interest in storytelling as he learnt storytelling from his maternal grandfather and Lombard fishers and glass-blowers. Also one of the places in which Fo lived during his early years was Porto Valtravaglia, a glassblowing colony, in which resided, supposedly, the highest percentage of insane people in Italy, which may or may not be of reflected in his work.
After a series of events, which involved joining the fascist army of Mussolini's Repubblica Sociale Italiana, joining the anti-aircraft division of the navy, joining, and then deserting, a Parachute squadron, taking architectural studies, he had a nervous breakdown which resulted in the doctor advising him to spend time doing that which brought him joy. This lead to him beginning painting and becoming involved in the piccoli teatri (small theatre) movement, in which he began to present improvised monologues.
In 1950, Fo collaborated on a show with Franco Parenti, who described him as "absolutely original, with an extraordinary humour, wit and personification" and he also described that they intended to originate a project in which they would work together on a new type of revue, one which didn't copy reality, but which involved people and took a stand. Fo continued to create 18 adult fairy tale monologues adapted from biblical and historical tales. The series included Shakespearean tales with a twist such as Ophelia portrayed in Hamlet as Hamlet's uncle's transvestite mistress, while Horatio plays the ghost of Hamlet's father dressed up as a sheet and only appears when Hamlet is drunk. As well as a sadistic Juliet who keeps Romeo in her garden with savage dogs however scandalised authorities cancelled the show. Additionally he was offered roles in a series of farces at the Arlechhino Theatre and Fo said, "For me the lesson of cinema meant learning from a technical point of view what audience has already grasped: a story divided into sequences, a fast pace, sharp dialogue, and getting rid of the conventions of space and time. Working on screenplays gave me an apprenticeship as a playwright and I was able to transfer the lessons of the new technical means to the theatre" Some of his other work was also of a similar style such as his show, Canzonissima, for RAI. The show contained satirical songs and sketches depicting the lives of the working classes, which led to them being heavily censored as it often raised issues. One sketch featured a fat aunt to came to visit her nephew at his workplace (a canned meat factory) only to fall into a machine and be made into mincemeat, which the nephew retained in a cupboard at home and often as a display for friends. This caused a riff as canned meat producers were complaining but despite this Canzonissima proved to be popular attracting millions of viewers and Rame maintained that taxi drivers in Italian cities would often say they had no work during broadcast as everyone was watching it. However many of the other sketches also may have furthered inflamed the annoyance of building worker's unions at working condition so RAI refrained from broadcasting the sketch on dangerous working conditions faced by workers at building sites. This had consequences in a national uproar over the censorship with headlines in the daily newspaper and questions in the Italian parliament and led to RAI during Fo and Rame and destroying all the Canzonissima recordings. the dispute in turn led to the banning if Fo and Rame from Italian television for 14 years.
Not only that as that was not the only occasion Rame bought light on controversial topics. In December 1970, Fo's Accidental Death of an Anarchist (described as a "grotesque farce about a tragic farce") was performed and it happened to be about the right wing extremists and the Italian Secret Service who carried out a "terrorist" attack on the Banca Nazionale dell'Agricoltura in Piazza Fontana in Milan in 1969. This led to fascists, commissioned by high ranking officials in the Italian Federal police, abducting Rame, holding her at gunpoint and then dumping her in a van. They abused her by raping her, burning with cigarettes, beating her and slashing her with razor blades and leaving her in a park however this did not stop Fo and Rame from continuing to touring around Lombardy and Veneto throughout the year. Another instance that Fo had trouble with the police was when he was arrested in Sassari in November 1973 during the duration of his play, The People's War in Chile which provoked a national uproar claiming that under Italian law the police couldn't enter the theatre during the performance. The outcry encouraged attendance at future performances.
He also performed Cocorico with Giustino Durano, which featured a 20 minute sketch based on the plight of black people in the United States. As well as that some of the other topics Fo performed about included the Vietnam War, Lee Harvey Oswald, and the assassination of John F Kennedy in Throw the lady out and fascism which was represented by a puppet which gave birth to representatives of the Church, the Monarchy, the Army and industrialism.
When Fo was nominated for the Nobel Prize for the first time, his response was "I have become famous for my aversion to figures of reverence and genuflections of any kind. This Nobel business is a real comedy. I can imagine the look on the faces of certain state officials, magistrates and politicians I know. They take great pains to shut me up and clap me in handcuffs, and the Swedes go and play a trick like this.. Receiving the prize would be like acting in one of my plays"
In April and May 1988, Fo and Rame worked collectively on an original project, by the name of Forced Transmission. They're project was restricted to RAI 3 because of the controversial content as the series included ironic songs about RAI censorship and Italian politicians, satirical news bulletins, a ballet on Palestine and a "weather report" on national rape statistics.
Even throughout the 21st Century, Fo has been actively participated and campaigned on various political, social and cultural issues for example in 2008, he was amongst the signatories of an open letter to la Repubblica which called on the state to protect Robert Saviano, whose life was under threat after having exposed the clandestine activities of the Camorra in his 2006 book Gomorrah so he continued to support the causes he believes in.
Dario Fo was born on the 24th March 1926 in Varese, Italy. He is a well-known comedian, singer, theatre-director, political campaigner and playwright, much of his work is performed and he is said to be "arguably the most widely performed contemporary playwright in world theatre". The majority of his plays consisted of improvisations and the recovery of prohibited forms of theatre and the ancient Italian style of commedia dell'arte. Fo had been equipped with an interest in storytelling as he learnt storytelling from his maternal grandfather and Lombard fishers and glass-blowers. Also one of the places in which Fo lived during his early years was Porto Valtravaglia, a glassblowing colony, in which resided, supposedly, the highest percentage of insane people in Italy, which may or may not be of reflected in his work.
After a series of events, which involved joining the fascist army of Mussolini's Repubblica Sociale Italiana, joining the anti-aircraft division of the navy, joining, and then deserting, a Parachute squadron, taking architectural studies, he had a nervous breakdown which resulted in the doctor advising him to spend time doing that which brought him joy. This lead to him beginning painting and becoming involved in the piccoli teatri (small theatre) movement, in which he began to present improvised monologues.
In 1950, Fo collaborated on a show with Franco Parenti, who described him as "absolutely original, with an extraordinary humour, wit and personification" and he also described that they intended to originate a project in which they would work together on a new type of revue, one which didn't copy reality, but which involved people and took a stand. Fo continued to create 18 adult fairy tale monologues adapted from biblical and historical tales. The series included Shakespearean tales with a twist such as Ophelia portrayed in Hamlet as Hamlet's uncle's transvestite mistress, while Horatio plays the ghost of Hamlet's father dressed up as a sheet and only appears when Hamlet is drunk. As well as a sadistic Juliet who keeps Romeo in her garden with savage dogs however scandalised authorities cancelled the show. Additionally he was offered roles in a series of farces at the Arlechhino Theatre and Fo said, "For me the lesson of cinema meant learning from a technical point of view what audience has already grasped: a story divided into sequences, a fast pace, sharp dialogue, and getting rid of the conventions of space and time. Working on screenplays gave me an apprenticeship as a playwright and I was able to transfer the lessons of the new technical means to the theatre" Some of his other work was also of a similar style such as his show, Canzonissima, for RAI. The show contained satirical songs and sketches depicting the lives of the working classes, which led to them being heavily censored as it often raised issues. One sketch featured a fat aunt to came to visit her nephew at his workplace (a canned meat factory) only to fall into a machine and be made into mincemeat, which the nephew retained in a cupboard at home and often as a display for friends. This caused a riff as canned meat producers were complaining but despite this Canzonissima proved to be popular attracting millions of viewers and Rame maintained that taxi drivers in Italian cities would often say they had no work during broadcast as everyone was watching it. However many of the other sketches also may have furthered inflamed the annoyance of building worker's unions at working condition so RAI refrained from broadcasting the sketch on dangerous working conditions faced by workers at building sites. This had consequences in a national uproar over the censorship with headlines in the daily newspaper and questions in the Italian parliament and led to RAI during Fo and Rame and destroying all the Canzonissima recordings. the dispute in turn led to the banning if Fo and Rame from Italian television for 14 years.
Not only that as that was not the only occasion Rame bought light on controversial topics. In December 1970, Fo's Accidental Death of an Anarchist (described as a "grotesque farce about a tragic farce") was performed and it happened to be about the right wing extremists and the Italian Secret Service who carried out a "terrorist" attack on the Banca Nazionale dell'Agricoltura in Piazza Fontana in Milan in 1969. This led to fascists, commissioned by high ranking officials in the Italian Federal police, abducting Rame, holding her at gunpoint and then dumping her in a van. They abused her by raping her, burning with cigarettes, beating her and slashing her with razor blades and leaving her in a park however this did not stop Fo and Rame from continuing to touring around Lombardy and Veneto throughout the year. Another instance that Fo had trouble with the police was when he was arrested in Sassari in November 1973 during the duration of his play, The People's War in Chile which provoked a national uproar claiming that under Italian law the police couldn't enter the theatre during the performance. The outcry encouraged attendance at future performances.
He also performed Cocorico with Giustino Durano, which featured a 20 minute sketch based on the plight of black people in the United States. As well as that some of the other topics Fo performed about included the Vietnam War, Lee Harvey Oswald, and the assassination of John F Kennedy in Throw the lady out and fascism which was represented by a puppet which gave birth to representatives of the Church, the Monarchy, the Army and industrialism.
When Fo was nominated for the Nobel Prize for the first time, his response was "I have become famous for my aversion to figures of reverence and genuflections of any kind. This Nobel business is a real comedy. I can imagine the look on the faces of certain state officials, magistrates and politicians I know. They take great pains to shut me up and clap me in handcuffs, and the Swedes go and play a trick like this.. Receiving the prize would be like acting in one of my plays"
In April and May 1988, Fo and Rame worked collectively on an original project, by the name of Forced Transmission. They're project was restricted to RAI 3 because of the controversial content as the series included ironic songs about RAI censorship and Italian politicians, satirical news bulletins, a ballet on Palestine and a "weather report" on national rape statistics.
Even throughout the 21st Century, Fo has been actively participated and campaigned on various political, social and cultural issues for example in 2008, he was amongst the signatories of an open letter to la Repubblica which called on the state to protect Robert Saviano, whose life was under threat after having exposed the clandestine activities of the Camorra in his 2006 book Gomorrah so he continued to support the causes he believes in.
Who was Giovanni Pinelli?
Giovanni Pinelli was an anarchist who was accused of being responsible for bombing the Agriculture bank in Milan, which resulted in the death of over 16 people. Pinelli was reported to have flown out of the window on the fourth floor and the police explained that Pinelli had committed suicide. Ten years later, at Catanzaro in Southern Italy, the trial finally came to an end revealing the culprits to be three fascists for being materially responsible for the crime. One of these fascists happened to be an agent for the Italian secret police and so it was ironically confirmed that the mastermind behind the crime was the organisation that has been supposedly entrusted with the protection of the Italian state. High ranking officials in military and political institutions were charged and first condemned however later mysteriously acquitted. Act 1, Scene 2 Scene two starts with the Maniac disguised as the Judge and he meets with the new Constable (who is the same constable from the previous scene only with a moustache, this could possible imply that he is an unimportant character who doesn't have a voice) and Inspector Pissani. He asks to see the superintendent in the room where the interrogation of the anarchist took place. He has a tape recorder set up under the desk to record the events so he doesn't need a transcript to be made. When the superintendent is summoned, it is implied that he has previously been hitting someone as his sleeves were rolled up and he was carrying a rubber blackjack. He is unaware of the Maniac's presence and so is warning Pissani about not being too violent and they are already on thin ice. The Maniac makes his presence clear and shows signs of recognition when he sees the Superintendent and it is shown that the Maniac and Superintendent must've attended a school in Calabria and both remember a fascist song, this gives the Superintendent the impression that the Maniac has an allegiance with him. The Maniac analyses the report and question what drove the anarchist to jump out of the window, which was apparently a raptus. So the Maniac asks them to act out the exact scene of the interrogation and concludes that the two together lied to him, accused him without proof and put psychological pressure on the anarchist which led to his raptus and so his death. The Superintendent and Inspector don't wish to be prosecuted and so claim that there's another transcript and we find that there are numerous copies of a the Verbatim transcript, which shows that they have manipulated the real truth to their own liking, in the new version of the transcript the interrogation finished at 8 and the anarchist jumped out of the window at midnight and he had cheered up in the time as he did not believe their lies and was serene. The Maniac finds a fault in this version of events too as their argument depended on the anarchist committing suicide on his own accord due to his raptus and now this had backfired. The Maniac suggests they should jump out of window too as the public is enraged and wants justice however the Superintendent asks the Maniac for help, under the impression that he is the judge and has experience and wisdom that could help them get out of this situation. The Maniac however is winding them up and making it even more ridiculous and advising them to say they were sympathetic for the anarchist and singing along with the anarchist. This is farcical because they are in a hopeless situation and the Maniac is making them sing, which is obviously silly. Act Two, Scene One The scene continues with Pissani, Superintendent, Constable and Maniac trying to think of a reasonable explanation for the anarchist's death. They decide that the false accusations made by them had not upset the anarchists mental state. The Maniac tries to make them confess that they had been physically abusing him whilst interrogating him but they deny this, Pissani claims that they had been interrogating the anarchist 'light-heartedly and so the Maniac is sarcastic when he suggests that they tend to joke around when interrogating mass murders. The Maniac is really ironic as he says that Police officers tell jokes to their suspects which explains the shrieks, screams, and thuds, which seem to be shrieks of laughter. There is farce evident as the Maniac is acting this out and being ridiculous . He goes on to state that this explains why innocent, ordinary people dress themselves up as anarchists and have themselves arrested so they can enjoy the jokes. At this point the police officers realise that the Maniac is scorning them and so they continue with the task at hand. The Maniac asks them who helped the anarchist up to the window since the anarchist could not have reached on his own. There is humour again as the Maniac suggests that the anarchist must have springs in his heels if nobody gave him leg up to the window. The Constable states that he grabbed hold of the anarchist's leg as eh was tried to jump so his shoe came off in the Constable's hand. However the anarchist was found with both shoes intact and in all the confusion of trying to make up a story to explain this, which included the anarchist supposedly wearing two shoes, the truth slips out which is that Pissani tried to hide the shoe and refrain from handing it in as evidence and that Pissani and Superintendent both threw the anarchist out of the window. They realise what they have said but they are interrupted by the phone call of the reporter, Feletti. They decide that they will introduce the Maniac as a Forensic expert. Feletti raises a few points such as why an ambulance was called earlier than the anarchists reported fall, why there was no analysis of the parabola of the fall or the bruises on the anarchists neck and the Maniac says that the police officers had hit the anarchist causing him to be paralysed and gasping for air and that is why they had supported him whilst he leant out of the window to take in gulps of cold night air and accidentally dropped him. At this point Bertozzo enters the scene with a copy of the bomb that was set off in the bank and as he is not in on the plan he is about to blurt out that the Maniac isn't the Forensic expert but Pissani and Superintendent stop him from speaking and try to hint to him that Feletti is watching them and so they need to be careful. Feletti raises the question of another unexploded bomb found at the bank, which was purposely exploded after being discovered which hints at a police cover up. It should've been saved as evidence so they had a signature of the bombers. Also the bomb was very complex and Feletti states that the group of anarchists were dreamers and not capable of planning such events and not equipped to make such sophisticated bombs. She concludes that the bombs were made by professional military men. So she deducts that the bombing were the doings of a fascist group aided with police support so they could discredit left-wing organisations and intimidate people so they vote for groups that are highly supportive of police controls. They aimed to frighten the population with the idea that this would lead to a strong, controlling leadership. Throughout this the Maniac acts as if though he is helping the police officers but he makes them contradict themselves. The play ends comically but also seriously. The Maniac makes some serious points about his political beliefs and he states that scandals don't necessarily bring justice and that it is merely a brief outlet of public anger before it dissolves and the status quo is restored. The Maniac had recorded evidence of the events and would send copies to high authorities and media outlets and he also activated the bomb and left it in the room with the police officers handcuffed. There are two endings to the play, open for the audience to decide. One in which Feletti walks away letting the police officers die and one in which she releases them and they repay her by handcuffing her since she knows about their sins. |
Act 1, Scene 1
Act 1, Scene 1 starts with Inspector Bertozzo introducing himself as an average "nine to five" policeman who has to deal with the controversy around the recent death of an anarchist, is claimed to be suicide by his colleague but the verdict decided stated it was "accidental". When he introduces himself, he says his name which is Inspector Francesco Giovanni Batista Giancarlo Bertozzo, which is a ridiculously long name and so contributes as elements of farce. As well as that as we continue slapstick comedy is evident throughout the scene such as when the "Constable encounters a mouse trap hidden in the filing cabinet" and this is a stage direction, which in turn proves to be vital to show actions that make the play comedic. Some other examples include when the Maniac warns the Constable to stay away and threatens to bite otherwise, this is an example of farce as it is absurd for a man to bite people. There are stage directions to show the Maniac chasing the Constable which is farcical as they are grown men and it is unusual in the given situation. As well as that there are stage directions to show the Maniac blowing a raspberry at Inspector Pissani which is farcical comedy as it is childish and the reader is aware that the Maniac is creating confusion and winding up Inspector Pissani. Lastly at the end of the scene Inspector Pissani encounters Inspector Bertozzo and is under the impression that Bertozzo had been ridiculing him and so punches him which again is a form of slapstick comedy. Additionally throughout the scene, there were satirical references to issues such as when the Maniac says "I'd lose all credibility. Any less and they'd think I was no good, a beginner or something" and "a fat bill is the most effective panacea especially for the doctor". This is referring to how doctors and healthcare was overpriced and in order to seem genuine the Maniac would have to overcharge the patients since that was the norm anyway. Also the Maniac points out that the police accuse people, possibly the innocent too and make sure that they are convicted instead of defending the people, which is originally their job when he says "I don't want to defend. I'm like you, Inspector, I like to accuse, convict, judge and pass sentence". Similarly satire is used to show how judges were corrupted and abused the authority and power given to them when the Maniac says "But the frailer and feebler judges get, the more they are elevated to superior and powerful positions. Oh yes, that's the job for me. 'Fifty years for you, thirty years for you'" This is done by the way he makes out judges to give out sentences absent-mindedly, without much consideration and also when he says "Council can come and corrupt me in my chambers" Fo uses comedy through the Maniac, to make this point as the Maniac seems to be fantasizing about impersonating a judge and so on. Another instance there is an element of satire is where Bertozzo is instructing the Constable and he is following the instructions and the Maniac instructs the Constable to "Put they key in your mouth and swallow it" and the Bertozzo agrees instantly not realising what's actually being said and so the Constable actually begins to swallow the key and this implies that the police did not have a mind of their own and were almost puppets who would do other people's biddings as they were told to. The Farce of Dario Fo A major theme incorporated into the play is that of abuse of power and corruption as the play aims to unearth the truth behind the curtains drawn by the Italian police at the time and other positions in power. He is able to emphasise these points with the use of comedy in the form of satire and farce to shed light on the events leading to the death of the anarchist. Throughout Act One, Scene One, there were satirical references to issues such as when the Maniac says "I'd lose all credibility. Any less and they'd think I was no good, a beginner or something" and "a fat bill is the most effective panacea especially for the doctor". This is referring to how doctors and healthcare was overpriced and in order to seem genuine the Maniac would have to overcharge the patients since that was the norm anyway and this shows corruption as these individuals are doing so for their own benefit and gain. Also the Maniac points out that the police accuse people using satirical comedy, possibly the innocent too and make sure that they are convicted instead of defending the people, which is originally their job when he says "I don't want to defend. I'm like you, Inspector, I like to accuse, convict, judge and pass sentence". Similarly satire is used to show how judges were corrupted and abused the authority and power given to them when the Maniac says "But the frailer and feebler judges get, the more they are elevated to superior and powerful positions. Oh yes, that's the job for me. 'Fifty years for you, thirty years for you'" This is done by the way he makes out judges to give out sentences absent-mindedly, without much consideration and also when he says "Council can come and corrupt me in my chambers" Fo uses comedy through the Maniac, to make this point as the Maniac seems to be fantasizing about impersonating a judge and so on. In addition the Maniac offers that the police could re-write their version of events once again when he says "You know what I say...You mean draw up a third version?", making them look like fools as there is only supposed to be one true version of events and this highlights that the police would adapt the ‘truth’ to their own liking. Another instance that Fo uses satire to present his view of the truth is when the Maniac ridicules the police by burning and throwing out the documents, this mocks the way in which police destroy evidence to cover up the truth when needs be, which again shows the corruption of the police. Satire proves to be effective as by making the audience laugh, Fo is also able to become closer to them, making his political views more important. There are a lot of examples of farce evident through the play and this is effective as it makes the grotesque nature of the play and allows the audience to enjoy the play and be entertained as well. For example in Act One, Scene One, which happens to be a critical scene as it introduces the scene of the death to the audience and slapstick is used to relieve the tension by making the audience laugh for example when the Maniac slaps and kicks the police officers, which is unexpected for the audience and so proves to be humorous. The farce is effective because it makes the play light-hearted and dilutes the horror of the truth of the situation and it is also effective as it helps the audience understand the situation better rather than to lecture them about it. As well as that elements of farcical comedy are used in the end of Act One, Scene Two as there is a powerful irony when the Maniac is suggesting the police officers to sing the anarchist song about liberty for the people in order to prove they have a compassionate side - "People would be happy to forgive all of your cretinous blunders if they could see two decent human beings behind it all.” And they agree to sing and this is comedic as it is a ridiculous option in the given situation but it shows the desperateness in which they are in. The statement is ironic as when they agree to do this they only further prove the hypocritical nature of those in power to the audience. The Maniac plays an important role in the play as his character helps uncover the truth about the death of the anarchist using confusion and wit. He’s also important as he is a decoy character and even though he is portrayed as insane, he is actually normal when everything else is abnormal, his character reveals the farcical lengths the Italian police went in order to avoid any responsibility of the death of the anarchist. He is constantly changing his character in the play which symbolizes the disguises and deception of the Italian police force and emphasis how ridiculous those in power can be. The Maniac's different disguises also emphasize the stupidity of the law and to show that corrupt people are often concealed within respectable government bodies. For example: In Act One, Scene One, the Maniac tries on different disguises asking the audiences opinion- "...No? All right forget it. What about...the anarchist...in Rome? No?.. Thirty years for you, forty for you, forty for you etc..." By addressing the audience, it engages the audience as they become co-conspirators, and in on the political conspiracy. The Superintendent is another major character in the play and he is cynical, sarcastic and always scheming. He represented the police force as he is in charge of the case. In Act One, Scene Two when he speaks about the statement made by the police-"...more like a 'correction'". This reflects the abuses of police power that were present. He tries to eliminate their own mistakes, using a neutral euphemism and the power and authority he has at his disposal. This annoys the audience because it’s unjust but also making them laugh at how openly and confidently the Superintendent expresses his corruption.. In conclusion, Dario Fo uses a combination of Commedia characters, important political themes and performance techniques to both entertain and inform his audience about the abuse of power and corruption evident at the time. By incorporating laughter as a political weapon Fo is able to successfully inform his audience about the political issues in society and he was able to successfully do this with the use of Satire and Farce. |