Italian playwright Dario Fo, author of bitingly comic, politically volatile plays such as "Accidental Death of an Anarchist" and "Mistero Buffo (Comic Mystery)," has been awarded the Nobel Prize for literature. He is the first Italian dramatist to win the prize since Luigi Pirandello was honored in 1934.
The choice was an unexpected and somewhat controversial one, exciting both praise and criticism from Italy's literary establishment, politicians, and press, and outright indignation from the Vatican--a frequent target of Fo's plays.
Fo's work has been represented on these shores by "Can't Pay, Won't Pay," which had a long run Off-Broadway in 1980; and "Anarchist," which had a brief run on Broadway in 1984. The latter play is based on a real incident in which an Italian railroad worker, arrested on suspicion of terrorism, fell to his death from a police station fourth-story window during an interrogation by the Milan police. The death was declared an accident, but many believed the worker to have been pushed.
Fo, a longtime Communist and left-wing sympathizer, had difficulty entering the U.S. to attend the Broadway premiere of "Anarchist," due to the United States' longstanding laws denying visas to Communist party members or people who took part in anti-government activities. The State Department granted Fo a waiver, however. He received similar permission to visit in 1986.
Fo is the author of more than 70 plays. His other works include "The Pope and the Witch," "About Face," "Adulto Orgasmo Escapes From the Zoo," and "Archangels Don't Play Pinball." He is also an actor.
This year's prize carries a $1 million cash award. Though many writers have received the Nobel, few known exclusively for playwrighting have been so honored. The last such awardee was Wole Soyinka, the Nigerian dramatist who won in 1986. The only American playwright to win the Nobel is Eugene O'Neill (1936).
"The arts community neglected those aspects of participation, democratization and popularization that might have helped sustain the arts when the political climate turned sour," the report said.
Tensions between the marketplace and public responsibility are battering today's arts groups, resulting in a crowding out of nonprofit culture and a loss of quality, according to the report.
According to the Times, the study also listed statistics to support positions made in earlier reports, such as the falling support from private-individual giving and foundations, and praised private-public partnerships which support arts institutions and projects.
Despite recent reports of how the arts improve cognitive skills in young children, the study argued that the arts haven't earned "a secure place in the basic curriculum."
The report also maintained that arts support will remain limited and at the mercy of politics as long as the supporters are perceived as "older, wealthier, better educated and whiter than a typical cross-section of the American public."
Minyan of the Stars, an organization founded by Joseph Papp to enable people in the entertainment industry to celebrate the Jewish holidays, will hold its annual Sukkah luncheon on Mon. Oct. 20 at 12 noon at Jack Weiler's Sukkah in the Sky, Grace Building, 43 W. 42 St., 50th floor, NYC. Comedienne Nancy Redman will perform. The program is open to all for $36 per person, $18 for members. For reservations and membership information, call Tim Boxer at (212) 736-2600, ext. 250.
Four-time Emmy Award-winner Lorne Frohman, writer and producer of "Fernwood Tonight," "Jay Leno Specials," "D.C. Follies," "Dame Edna's Hollywood," and "Richard Pryor's Place," will hold a weekend workshop, "How to Write and Sell a Sitcom," Oct. 25-26 at The American Comedy Institute. Aside from writing a sitcom episode, participants will also learn how to sell a script, how to make a living as a comedy writer, and how to overcome writers' apprehensions. Tuition is $210. Enrollment is limited. Information: (212
