Mistero Buffo

The award-winning adaptation of Dario Fo’s modern masterpiece Mistero Buffo will return to London this autumn to kick off the new season at Pleasance Theatre London. Rhum + Clay’s version of Mistero Buffo remains timelier than ever. A physically impressive feat of solo storytelling and clowning, it features over one hundred characters in subversive versions of ancient tales, resulting in a rallying cry for the exploited and the disenfranchised. This contemporary adaptation of Fo’s controversial work centres around a travelling storyteller who appears as a Deliveroo driver, taking a moment between shifts to deliver a daring swipe at established power.

This is a bold and modern retelling of Dario Fo’s production, with additional writing by Julian Spooner and Nicholas Pitt, that speaks to the societal concerns of today. Mistero Buffo takes the form of a series of short stories that riff off biblical events and figures to satirise existing power structures and the wider political landscape. The stories are mischievous celebrations of the best and worst of humanity, the epic seen through the eyes of the ordinary; and the magic and mundanity of witnessing a miracle. Dario Fo’s original production was fiercely political and built to reach everyone; from those in striking car factories to football stadiums and was subsequently banned by the Catholic Church citing it to be ‘The most blasphemous work in Italy’s history’.

Having been shown across the UK, France and Australia, the powerful production has been further adapted for 2025 to better respond to the ever-changing political climate, bringing fresh dynamism for its run at Pleasance Theatre in London.

Magnificent production... with an astounding performance – ★★★★★ The Stage 

A shapeshifting, body-popping, mesmerising performance – ★★★★★ WhatsOnStage

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