For over sixty years, Tom Stoppard’s *Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead* has been performed all over the world and has thus become a much-loved and highly regarded classic of contemporary theatre.
In this new production of the play, the director has chosen to blend Stoppard’s British humour with the comic tradition of the Commedia dell’Arte, to create a production that explores the profound existentialist and philosophical reflections of the original text, whilst highlighting the comic and emotional power that characterises the play.
The play is a reimagining of *Hamlet*, viewed through the keyhole via the wide-eyed, naive gaze of the two protagonists, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who, when observing the entire story of the Danish prince, perceive only its surreal and farcical elements.
Stoppard, after all, is known to the general public for having written the screenplay for *Shakespeare in Love*, in which he peered behind the scenes of *Romeo and Juliet*, whilst with *Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead* he plunges headlong into the backstage world of *Hamlet*. He takes, in fact, two minor characters from Shakespeare’s *Hamlet* – Rosencrantz and Guildenstern – and makes them the protagonists of a comedy with a bizarre tone.
On stage is a pair of great actors – Francesco Pannofino and Francesco Acquaroli, playing Rosencrantz and Guildenstern respectively – who become a duo of tragicomic masks, accompanied by Paolo Sassanelli in the role of the Master of the Troupe.
At the heart of our production is a grand stage mechanism, a medieval contraption that blends the theatre-cum-cart of the Commedia dell’Arte with the two-storey stage typical of Elizabethan theatre; a playful and ever-changing set, in constant motion, which transforms now into a theatre, now into a castle, now into a ship.
Even the period costumes can be transformed and altered, in a dynamic that continually emphasises the concept of theatre within theatre. After all, if Stoppard, with his play, aims to reinterpret *Hamlet* in a comic vein, this production, too, thrives on this meta-theatrical suggestion.
A playful, dynamic production with the flavour of street theatre, popular – in the most Shakespearean sense of the term – an expression of a multi-layered theatre capable of moving and speaking to everyone.

Director’s Notes

I have always thought that Tom Stoppard’s idea of peering at *Hamlet* through the keyhole – of viewing it through the eyes of the two clowns, the two buffoons, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern – and of transforming the greatest tragedy of all time into a farce about human existence was brilliant. I believe the play has enjoyed great success over the years and is much loved precisely because of the freshness of its dialogue, the wit of its staging, and its ability to take two secondary characters from Shakespeare’s work and make them the protagonists of an entertaining and existential story.
With this production, I would like to present the Italian audience with a new, entertaining show that blends British verbal humour with the physical comedy of the Commedia dell’Arte. Featuring a pair of outstanding actors – Francesco Pannofino and Francesco Acquaroli – in the roles of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two perfect clowns/adventurers, capable of making these two extraordinary characters unforgettable, once again. Alongside them, in the role of the Leader of the Troupe, is Paolo Sassanelli, the ideal choice to guide the company of wandering comedians with irony, charisma and cheerfulness. Rounding out the cast are Andrea Pannofino and Chiara Mascalzoni.

Alberto Rizzi