Fo Plays: 2: Can't Pay? Won't Pay!, Elizabeth, The Open Couple, and An Ordinary Day (Methuen World Classics) (v. 2) (Paperback)

by Dario Fo (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Dario Fo "gives even the wildest gags a political flavor."-Guardian

Can't Pay? Won't Pay!: "This is no gloomy agitprop. Fo-faced farce wears a broad smile and proceeds at breathtaking speed."-Financial Times

Elizabeth: "Portrays our last Tudor monarch in Fo's characteristically rollicking vein ... A triumph for Gillian Hanna as a translator."-Financial Times

The Open Couple and An Ordinary Day, written with Franca Rame, deal wittily with the fate of women in a society shaped by men.

Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Italian

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Product Details

• Paperback: 285 pages
• Publisher: A&C Black (April 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0413680207
• ISBN-13: 978-0413680204
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,414,067 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Pleasant Surprise, October 21, 2002

By	Randy Keehn (Williston, ND United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I always look forward to the annual Nobel Prize for Literature with the hope that I'll be able to discover a new "diamond in the rough". When I read the descriptions of Fo's avant garde works, I thought it looked too strange for my taste. However, I came across this book on sale so I thought I'd take a look. I was very pleasantly surprised and actually had a hard time putting the book down.

This is a collection of four plays. The first one is rather political in nature and might seem more enjoyable with a better knowledge of contemporary Italian economics. However, the absurdity comes through very clearly. The comedy comes through as well. I came away with a pretty good grasp of the author's view of the Italian economic problems (as well as that of the European Economic Community). However, this leftist view point left me feeling that there is another side to the story. That, of course, is my problem and not the author's shortcoming.

The second play is an interesting and enjoyable look at Queen Elizabeth I done in great comedy and absurdity. There is a main character named Grosslady who steals the show. She speaks a sort of Esperanto slang that is absolutely hilarious. There is an accompanying translation in the back of the play to help the reader understand her "language". I normally dislike anything that detracts from the flow of the book. However, I enjoyed the availability of the translation to help me follow the flow of the book. At the same time, I made sure I read the actual lines that Grosslady has in the play because it is such a brilliant comedic concoction. For example, her word for England is "Angleterror". This was all brilliantly translated by Gillian Hanna.

The last two plays are interesting examinations of human relationships and interdependence. They continue in the comedy of the absurd.

Perhaps the best recommendation I can give this collection is that I am now looking to read more of Dario Fo's works. Give this one a try!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars humorous more than anything else, May 7, 1999

By A Customer

The first time I heard about Dario Fo was when he won the Nobel prize in 1997, and this was the first book of his that I could get my hands on.I wasn't disappointed.His plays are eminently readable and quite hilarious at times.The only drawback was that being not too well versed regarding Italian politics,some of the puns were loston me[in spite of the helpful notes provided at the back].If you enjoy reading plays you'll like this.