Given the difficulties of maintaining the relevance and interest of Accidental Death of an Anarchist in twenty-first century Oxford, the opening night of this student adaptation at the Burton Taylor managed to inject a good deal of life into the translated version. Bear in mind, however, that as Dario Fo himself commented, the play is most rewarding for Italians who experienced the actual events that took place, or those who have enough of an understanding of its cultural and historical context to be absorbed into its notorious satire. It may still be enjoyed without particular knowledge of the play’s background, but if one has no interest in political satire as an art form, then it may be best to steer clear.
Despite the translated version’s attempts to relate to an English audience, the remoteness of context may make it difficult for the viewer to remain engaged with the narrative of the piece. The complexities of the script make it an extremely dialogue heavy affair, and as a result, much of the first half of the play can be quite laborious to engage with. Indeed, in the first half the cast are sometimes guilty of rushing their lines without investing suitable tone and emotion to coax the audience along.
Some of the most engaging moments in the play are drawn from the energy of ‘The Maniac’, played to great effect by Jonny Rhodes. This energy seemed to overwhelm him at moments in the first half of the play, with the occasional slip from role due to rapid line delivery. Certainly in the second half, however, he had relaxed into a suitable tempo and helped create some truly engaging moments, most notably in his cunning manipulation of Inspector Pissani (Lewis Goodall) and the Superintendent (Max Millard). These two developed well as a pair, likewise relaxing during the second half of the play and hamming themselves up as suitable victims for the maniac’s subtle jibes and attacks.
Perhaps the pace of the play may seem slightly imbalanced between the two halves, with the plethora of physical moments in the second half sometimes threatening to plunge it into confusion. It was a shame that the moment where the characters deliberately fall out of role to articulate political points was swallowed slightly in the visual action; Moments like this have the potential, unfortunately not adequately realised, for the play to engage the cynicism of a modern audience. The addition of Lizzie Davidson as Feletti the journalist, though, did help to check the exuberant physicality, with her precise and considered delivery complimenting the role and the play well.
Given the density of dialogue in the play, it is a credit to the actors that they managed to sustain the energy of the performance during its one and a half hour running time. If you’re willing to forgive a few weak moments and character slips, and commit to engaging in the relentless satire of Dario Fo, then this show will provide you with some memorable moments, particularly from the literally maniacal lead role.
