The open couple
FOUGARO ARTCENTER welcomes the Theatre Team of Nafplio Culture Gate for a series of shows of the play The Open Couple by Dario Fo and Franca Rame, directed by Emilia Valvi, on Friday 29 and Saturday 30 November, and on Sunday 1 December at 6pm at FOUGARO GALLERY.
About the play
A man and a woman struggle, comically or otherwise, to secure freedom: freedom in their relationship, in love, in equality, in a shared life. The idea for an open relationship comes from the husband, upsetting the wife and the precarious balances between them. Will the relationship manage to find a new shared code or not? Can a relationship include more than two individuals? Is love possessive and exclusive or inclusive and open to undefined patterns? All these questions, more topical than ever before, return to the stage through the candid and funny dialogue devised by the indubitably unique theatrical duo of Fo and Rame.
In the original play the couple comprises a man and a woman. In this particular staging, 16 couples attempt to interpret this unique couple as they cheerfully present their own particular perspective. A 26-strong social-theatre troupe, a ‘chorus’ of men and a ‘chorus’ of women, ‘play’ with the theatrical codes of ancient Attic comedy, commedia del' arte and contemporary performance as they try out the roles of Antonia and her husband in order to shed light on this couple from various angles and entertain the audience in a humorous and mercilessly satirical way.
The brilliant humour and the fine satire of Italian Nobel laureate Dario Fo and his partner Franca Rame takes us into the couple's bedroom and makes accomplices out of us…
Not one but 16 open—almost wide open—couples will be waiting for you!
Production info
Direction, translation, music: Emilia Valvi
Stage & costume design: the team
Cast: Louisa Athanasiadi, Vivi Athanasopoulou, Stavroula Alexopoulou, Thalia Velegraki, Katerina Vergadou, Yannis Giatrakos, Matina Goga, Voula Dedea, Christina Zissopoulou, Sakis Kakarantzas, Andreas Kakolyris, Dina Kalogeropoulou, Charis Karapostolis, Dionisis Kasnetsi, Christina Klidona, Natasha Koloniotou, Maria Marathianou, Dimitris Michaloglou, Dina Michalopoulou, Soula Panagiotou, Konstantinos Sotiropoulos, Nassos Tzavaras, Spyros Tsaras, Despina Flevari
The Team wishes to thank
FOUGARO ARTCENTER for providing the venue
Katerina Kokka for her help in rehearsals
the enterprises for providing their premises for the photographs
the sponsors for their regular support.