The Maniac has been diagnosed with an "acting mania" and has been charged twelve times for impersonation, most recently while pretending to be a psychiatrist. It is through the Maniac that Fo satirizes the police, reveals the inconsistencies in their stories, demonstrates the questionable nature of their interrogation techniques, and presents counter-information to what was being presented about the case in the press. While he has no counterpart in real life, he speaks the majority of the lines and was played by Fo himself in the original staging. The Maniac is the pivotal character in the play. Throughout the play, Bertozzo is the butt of jokes and recipient of mocking laughter and physical abuse. This contributes to the play's slapstick humor, while reminding the audience of the abuse the anarchist likely endured during his interrogation. He recognizes the Maniac and tries to reveal his true identity to the others, but the Superintendent and the Inspector, thinking Bertozzo will admit that the Maniac is a judge to the Journalist, do whatever they can to silence him. He is absent for the majority of the "inquiry" the Maniac conducts with the Inspector and the Superintendent but returns as the play approaches its climax, bringing in a replica of a bomb destroyed by the police. His lines are humorless and serve as a means for the Maniac to display his own wit. We meet Bertozzo at the beginning of the play as he interviews the Maniac regarding his latest impersonation. In Italy, jokes about the carabinieri, one of the three police forces, are common Bertozzo fits the stereotype that is typically the target of these jokes. Bertozzo is the amalgam of several real-life police officers.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |