performed and directed by Teatrino Giullare
text by Davide Carnevali
lights Francesca Ida Zarpellon
thanks to Gianluca Vigone and David Sarnelli
a co-production Emilia Romagna Teatro Fondazione and Teatrino Giullare
with the support of Regione Emilia-Romagna
An idea is born from one’s mind and tragedy begins. Reason is to be blamed for this.
Menelaus starts puzzling over and pushes the conflict with his own ambitions to such a point that makes him unable to distinguish ideas from actions; he ends up being unable to live and love. Among books, statues and other memories, under the serious gaze of some irreverent gods, Menelaus struggles to find a reason to his life, without finding any.
He was not able to be become what he wanted to be, he is not a hero, he is not the protagonist in any story, he is just a minor character. This is why he writes his own gestures, trying to create his character, another self, an eidolon who is, in turn, incapable of living.
A short-circuit is produced between real and imaginary, a double cross where desperately comic words are used and myth is revealed through concepts like love, dream, conscience and death.
Menelaus has everything, lives in prosperity but still cannot enjoy his life. In his useless quest for a solution to his misery, he oversteps time, he does not live nor die.
A miserable impasse caused by the confused desires of a man who has to cope with his ideal self, a contemporary tragedy, indeed.
Press:
A flurry of amazing inventions. Renato Palazzi, Il Sole 24 Ore
The set-up expands, multiplies the levels, opens up glimpses of wonder. Massimo Marino, Corriere della Sera / Corriere di Bologna
A papier-mache polyphony and streams of consciousness, in which the scenic fiction will make the “epic non-hero” wear absolutely unexpected clothes. Eleonora Poli, Gazzetta di Modena
Teatrino Giullare brings to fruition an operation of great value, aesthetic, with regard to the very rich scenic and conceptual machinery, staging a text with non-trivial folds in such a complex, complete and symbolic form, giving it, as an environmental oxymoron, a rhythm very contemporary philosophical.
[…] Menelaus is a successful creation that deserves many replies and the attention of those who love the theater, its magic, and despite all, it cherishes mercy for human misery. Renzo Francabandera, Pane acqua culture
A superfine care of storytelling and acting art. […] an absolutely personal language, based on a subtle craftsmanship of the scene. There are two bodies, two voices, dozens of presences. Sergio Lo Gatto, Theater and Criticism
Very high scenic craftsmanship that makes us chuckle over the paturnias of this failed hero, but not without experiencing human understanding. Well done. Claudia Cannella, Hystrio
An intelligent and witty theatrical fun. Giuseppe Liotta, Hystrio
Sarcastic, funny, rhythmically brilliant, especially in some points of his progress towards the end, he also highlights the great acting skills of the protagonists. Vincenzo Alvaro, ABM Report
Visionary refinement and capacity for invention […] A tale that proceeds by marvelous constructions of contaminated and confused materials, statues / objects of intense evocative capacity, mobile sculptures of precious papier-mâché, objects made alive and talking, tiny puppets to replicate astonished characters , and actor’s bodies lent to anxious apparitions of exciting physical scenes in the enchanted time of the story. Giulio Baffi, Rumorscena
Between tragedy and opportune ironic outbursts, Giulia Dall’Ongaro and Enrico Deotti measure themselves in flesh and blood with their creatures of various invoices and greatness, which they animate in a continuous exchange of roles. MarioBianchi, KLP
An existential crisis recounted with wise scenic find […] very remarkable ventriloquism and mimicry skills and with the witty choice to fit, confuse and exchange characters and mannequins continuously. The BlogArtPost
The setting and the scenes have a profound effect on the interpretation of history, expressively expressing the tragic but also ironic dramaturgy of this afflicted and depressed Menelaus. Daniela Camarda, Teatro.it
The protagonists on stage are the virtuous illusions of Teatrino Giullare, who welcomes the challenge of words that invoke heroism and Reason with a figurative and elegant staging, which responds to the conceptual artifice with the figurative one. Maria D’Ugo, enricopastore.com
Humor becomes a powerful weapon on stage, a thick and sharp blade that cuts the tension between the public, actors and characters who, between delusions and awareness, have the good sense to come to their senses. Maurizio Dall’Acqua, Gufettopress
The use of non-trivial objects, the puppet-characters that come out of huge tomes as if to remind us of their connection with history, the magic that can be felt in certain passages are just some of the details that make the difference. Andrea Vezzosi, Fermataspettacolo.it
Two great actors. Antonella Pizzolla, Time Modulations
An irony oscillating between the refined and the popular jargon that leads the viewer to numerous moments of reflection. Emanuele Di Luccio, Gufetto.press
Attending this show is like witnessing two thousand years of theater history condensed over time, in places, in means. Cultursocialart
The unfinished aspirations become comic opportunities that mortify the failed hero, amusing the audience of a packed hall. Permanerecontromano.com
A witty actualization of the story of a rich and lucky man, but condemned by myth to a perpetually secondary role. The productive commitment is remarkable, even in the scenography. Claudio Facchinelli, Corriere Spettacolo
A text of which one cannot fail to praise the wise scenic construction, as well as the interpretation and the artisan work done by the two actors. Angela Albanese, Doppiozero
A show that launches into postmodernism but remains deeply classical, thanks to the refinement and inventiveness of its authors, visionaries and courageous. Valentina Arichetta, Curtain
TEATRINO GIULLARE 