MILAN – Two years ago Dario Fo left us. His first book came out in 1953 and was “The finger in the eye”. The last, however, a few months ago. A body of works, those of Fo, which covers over sixty years of our history. Very active in politics, and famous for his plays of political and social satire and for his political commitment. With his wife Franca Rame, with whom he shared his life and profession, he was among the exponents of the Soccorso Rosso Militant. Let’s retrace together some of his most beautiful works, apart from “Mistero buffo”, to which we have dedicated a great deal of study . The Finger in the Eye (1953)
“The finger in the eye” is the first “serious” show by Dario Fo, a theatrical text written and proposed by Dario Fo, Giustino Durano and Franco Parenti in 1953. The mime Jacques Lecoq also collaborated in the direction. Proposed as a magazine show, it was actually a piece of social and political satire, during the tour it was subjected to censorship several times. In the book-interview, edited by Giuseppina Manin, entitled “The world according to Fo” (Guanda 2007), among the many things he talks about, he also returns to “The finger in the eye”. In this book, “under a fake goliardic system” – wrote Fo – “the complaints flocked harshly against war, illegal work, exploitation, corruption. We joked about the history of the past, as well as the textbooks told it, and we found ourselves straight in the present. With the same rhetoric, the same cheating and falsification. Using the lesson of Brecht and Toller, they wore the clothes of characters handed down to us as heroes and suddenly put them in their underwear ”.READ ALSO: “Dario Fo and Franca Rame, the beauty and the jester of God” Not all thieves come to harm (1958)
A thief moves silently and sneaks into the house he wants to rob, but is interrupted by the ring of a telephone. He responds and hears his wife’s voice, ready to make him yet another scene of jealousy. Then the thief hears someone approaching, hides in the clock and from there he hears a man and a woman arrive, intent on betraying their respective spouses. To this is added a little later the entry of Anna, mistress of the house and wife of the man. A funny, irreverent text full of twists. Accidental death of an anarchist (1970)
This is one of the most famous comedies of the Nobel Prize, which Fo staged for the first time in Varese in December 1970 with his theater group “La Comune”. The work is dedicated to the “accidental death” (as the title ironically recalls) of the anarchist Giuseppe Pinelli, who died at the police station in Milan, falling out of the window. Following the violent political campaign that followed, Luigi Calabresi was killed. A show that cost Dario Fo over forty trials in various Italian cities. To avoid censorship, he had to change the text several times, until he moved the setting to the United States. You don’t pay! You don’t pay! (1974)
Written in 1974, it is a work closely linked to the historical and political context of the time: it makes use of newspaper headlines to talk about current events. During the opera, Fo invites the viewer to take a careful and critical look at things, unconsciously anticipating many of the difficulties that Italy would have to face in a short time. He analyzes the crises of the time and the difficulties of work, denounces the dismissals of pregnant women and criticizes the choice of the Catholic Church to prohibit contraceptives. In 2008, Franca Rame and Dario Fo decided to re-enact the revised text adapted to the current situation and to publish it under the new title “Under pay! You don’t pay! “. The rape of Francesca (1986)
Played by Franca Rame, this play (a comedy in two acts) premiered in Trieste in 1986. The protagonist is a shrewd lady who is kidnapped on commission by some criminals. But she is a strong and intelligent woman, able to turn the tables in her favor. Speaking of kidnapping, Fo takes the opportunity to construct a biting social satire that tackles various issues, from politics to AIDS. Race of Gypsy (2016)
“Race of Gypsy” is about Johann Trollmann (1907-1943), a Sinti boxer in Nazi Germany. He is the best of all, however he is a gypsy and this causes him some problems. There is no doubt, he is the best of all, but how does a gypsy represent the Germans, the great Germany, at the 1928 Olympics
No matter how good he is, how much we have won in the ring: he can never win. Dario Fo, thanks to a research by Paolo Cagna Ninchi, once again recovers a true and forgotten story. Only a short time ago did Germany finally recognize the value and authenticity of this story and handed the Trollmann family the crown of light heavyweight champion denied to Johann eighty years ago.
