The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey TIMON OF ATHENS: Know-the-Show Guide — 1 Know-the-Show Support Materials compiled and arranged by the Education Department of The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey In This Guide:TIMON OF ATHENS: Know-the-Show Guide — 2 Director’s Notes .......................................................................................p1 Accidental Death of an Anarchist: A Synopsis .........................................p2 Who’s Who in the Play ............................................................................p3 About the Playwright ...............................................................................p4 About the Translator ...............................................................................p5 In His Own Words: From Fo’s 1997 Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech......................p5 Fo’s Call to Action ....................................................................................p7 Further Reading .......................................................................................p7 Commedia Dell’Arte .................................................................................p8 Commentary and Criticism ......................................................................p9 About The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey .........................back cover The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey ACCIDENTAL DEATH TIMOOF ANN ANARCOF ATHEHINSST:: Know-the-Show Guide DIRECTOR’S NOTES: Accidental Death of an Anarchist Dario Fo is an internationally acclaimed playwright, director, actor and composer. Born in 1926 in the village of Sangiano, in Lombardy, Italy, his upbringing would greatly influence his life and his career. His grandfather told stories to attract customers to his produce cart. Fo’s father, a fervent socialist, held a job as a railway station worker but, in his free time, was an amateur actor. Fo’s mother wrote an autobiographical account of her childhood. The necessity of storytelling and performance was ingrained in Dario’s bloodline. In 1997, after receiving the Nobel Prize for Literature, he spoke about the people in his childhood community and how they affected his art: “They were the old storytellers, the master glass blowers, who taught me and other children the craftsmanship, the art, of spinning fantastic yarns. We would listen to them, bursting with laughter - laughter that would stick in our throats as the tragic allusion that surmounted each sarcasm would dawn on us.” Alongside art, politics shared an integral role in Fo’s development. During WWII, his family smuggled refugees, allied soldiers, and Jewish scientists into Switzerland. Toward the end of WWII, while attending college, Dario was conscripted to Mussolini’s army but refused to fight, opting instead to hide in an attic until the war was over. Initially studying to be an architect, Fo made his acting debut in Milan in 1952 and began writing satirical cabarets. In 1954, he married Franca Rame, who was also from a theatrical family, and in 1959, they started their own theatre: Fo- Rame Theatre Company. Fo would write, direct, design, and compose the shows while Rame would frequently star. This is where Fo’s career in the theatre took flight. To this date, Dario Fo has written over 70 plays. Due to its pointed and satirical nature, his work is commonly censored by authority, both religious and political. But his understanding of the power of storytelling and his commitment to the plight of common man earned him the adoration of the public. Though he has been banned, threatened, rioted against, and arrested on behalf of his art, his plays continue to be performed in over 40 countries. “Comedy is a form of madness” – Dario Fo Accidental Death of an Anarchist takes place in Milan, Italy in 1970. In the 1960s, Italian labor unions gained significant strength, forcing the government to overprint money in order to pay wages, thereby causing run-away inflation. Toward the end of 1960s, unions began to strike, calling for better pay and working conditions. The youth of Italy piggy-backed this cause and began protesting against their professors, the church, and the communist party. Many of these strikes and protests were met with violent retribution from the police. This period of time was known as “Hot Autumn.” Capitalizing on “Hot Autumn” were the neo-fascist groups, many of whom were backed and armed by the police. They began performing acts of terrorism in order to undermine the protests and strengthen the right-wing party. Giuseppe Pinelli was a 41-year-old railway worker and anarchist. On December 12th, 1969, a bomb went off at the Milan Bank of Agriculture. Pinelli was arrested, interrogated and kept in custody for three days. On December 15th, he fell to his death from the fourth floor of the police building. Fo wrote Accidental Death... in reaction to these events. Most of the information in the play is a dramatic reworking of the findings of the investigative journalists. -1- The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey ACCIDENTAL DEATH OF AN ANARCHIST: Know-the-Show Guide Accidental Death of an Anarchist: A Synopsis TIME AND PLACE: A police stati on in Milan, Italy. 1970. prompts them to re-enact In a second story offi ce, Inspector Bertozzo interrogates a man the anarchist’s Early in the play, the (referred to as “the Maniac” by the playwright). With a record interrogati on. Maniac refers to himself of impersonati ng dozens of people, the Maniac is currently According to as a “histromaniac.” accused of impersonati ng a psychologist and charging his the two men, ‘What is that?’ you pati ents astronomical fees. The Maniac witti ly defends himself, the interview are probably asking, claiming that he studied psychology by living in a mental concluded insti tuti on and can therefore rightly call himself a psychologist. with the especially since it is a When Bertozzo threatens the Maniac, the Maniac reminds the anarchist being wholly made-up word. inspector of what the repercussions of harming him would be seized by a Here’s it’s origin: –all of which he apparently learned from a lawyer at the mental “raptus,” which insti tuti on. culminated his·tri·on·ic [HISS-tree-on-ik] in his sudden The Maniac’s sharp wit leads Bertozzo to call into questi on adj. 1. of or pertaining to actors or suicidal leap the man’s claims of insanity. Frustrated, the inspector acti ng. out of the encourages the Maniac to give him his statement so that he 2. deliberately aff ected or window. With can be released. Horrifi ed, the Maniac begs Bertozzo to keep self-consciously emoti onal; encouragement overly dramati c, in behavior him at the police stati on, saying that he would sooner jump from the or speech. out of a window than brave the danger of the streets. As the Maniac, the n. 3. an actor. Maniac att empts to jump out the window, the inspector and Superintendent the constable chase him around the room to prevent him from and the -from the Late Lati n histriōnicus killing himself. Finally Bertozzo forces the Maniac to leave, and Inspector for “a player,” from histriō then rushes off to a meeti ng. reveal that the meaning “actor.” The Maniac sneaks back into the empty room and begins “anarchist” rifl ing through the inspector’s fi les. As he is about to destroy was actually an the records of his charges, he discovers a fi le that refers to the innocent man sudden death of a man (an accused anarchist) while in the they had randomly arrested, to whom they told several lies to process of being interrogated at the police stati on. The phone in order to get him to “confess.” In additi on, they disclose that rings. The Maniac answers it and begins speaking with a police they fabricated informati on to give to the media about the inspector from the fourth fl oor. The man on the other end of anarchist and his death. the phone warns the Maniac (who pretends to be a man named The Maniac (sti ll disguised as the Judge) tells the two that the Anghiari) that a High Court Judge has been sent up from Rome. government is furious with them, and that they will be heavily The Maniac speculates that the judge has been specifi cally sent punished. Then, in an act likely reminiscent of the true events to deal with the mysterious death of the anarchist. Following of the anarchist’s interrogati on, the Maniac tries to force the the barrage of insults he hurls at the fourth-fl oor inspector, the Superintendant and the inspector to jump out the window. Maniac decides to impersonate the High Court Judge. Inspector At that moment, the constable walks into the offi ce. As the Bertozzo re-enters the offi ce as the Maniac disguises himself, shamed offi cers try to regain their composure, the Maniac causing some confusion. tells the constable that the men were merely experiencing a The Maniac then goes to the fourth fl oor and waits for the “raptus.” He then gives them a taste of their own medicine, by inspector (identi fi ed as the Inspector in the Sports Coat) with telling them that what he said before was a lie: the government whom he had just spoken on the phone. Aft er thoroughly is, in fact, delighted with them. aggravati ng the man, the Maniac identi fi es himself as the judge WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!------------------------------- from the High Court, calls for the Superintendent, and begins With further cunning, the Maniac prods the men to confess that questi oning the two men about the death of the anarchist. He they rewrote the report of the anarchist’s fall from the window -2- The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey ACCIDENTAL DEATH OF AN ANARCHIST: Know-the-Show Guide SPOILER ALERT!! to make themselves seem innocent of his death. He then fascists rather than anarchists. Moreover, the fascists were further mocks the men by collaborati ng with them to write an aided and abett ed by the police in order to put blame on the even more outrageous rewrite of the report that makes the men left ist groups.