I didn't want the show to end! I was so lucky to catch the last show of the Fringe. Each and every member of the cast were superb and immensely talented-gifted. My daughter who is 11 and not easily pleased LOVED every second of the performance as well. I wish I was brave enough to lead a standing ovation as I'm certain that everyone else at the venue would have followed suit. I can't wait a whole year to see them again... I wish an opportunity presents itself sooner!!!

Didn’t know if commedia dell’arte would be for me, but this was just brilliant! Hilarious performances all around, fun plot, great masks and costumes, and a fantastic cast. Pedrolino had us in absolute stitches!

I loved this show. Just didn’t want it to end. Amazing performances and what a funny story! Thank you.

“The Italians in England”

It’s Queen Elizabeth’s birthday; Shakespeare has not yet appeared to entertain in the early years of her reign, and she is bored with English ballad singers. What she wants for her next birthday is the current rage in all other royal courts but hers: the Italians and their Commedia dell’Arte. Action Theatre Italy premieres Rupert Raison’s “The Italians in England,” bringing to the 21st century the 16th century Il Vecchio Geloso (The Jealous Old Man), adapted from an original canovaccio by Flaminio Scala. The ten professional actors who helped Raison develop the
production in a workshop three years ago now perform the farcical, laugh-out loud romp of comedy and music, with half the cast in leather half-masks and all in elaborate costumes of the period and genre. The direction is uncannily superb as even something as simple/complicated as heads turning back and forth in rapid and orchestrated succession repeatedly bring the house down in laughter. Raw passions, a jealous husband, horny servants and masters, and attacking wild boars are just a few of the hilarious surprises awaiting the show’s lucky audiences.

I’d never seen commedia dell’arte before but I’m a big Shakespeare fan and this is an earlier form of theatre from Italy (my favourite country) and part of the history of how theatre developed as a type of culture / performance, and something that I’ve never had the chance to see before. I didn’t know what to expect but I found it hugely enjoyable and, in the end, heartwarming. The
action is very stylised, with lots of slapstick and physical comedy, more like a Carry On film than a serious play, and all the characters were perfectly drawn and acted superbly for their full comic potential. And I loved the way all the characters were brought into the happy vibe at the ending.

Superbly acted, hilarious, loved the use of masks. Never a boring moment. Highly recommend this show.

Italians in England by Action Theatre (Italy)

A young man connives to have a tryst with the young wife of a rich old man by arranging a dinner at the villa of a shared old doctor friend. From an abused fool to a cowardly captain to the rich cuckold, all of the elements of Italian commedia dell’arte are here, and performed perfectly and exuberantly. The bawdy jokes, broad humor, and ribald plot form a perfect blend.

This is the 18th most enjoyable of the 111 shows I have seen so far at the Fringe this year. I hope to see more than 150 this year. You may see my other three-sentence reviews, in order from most enjoyable to worst, at my non-commercial website: https://fringefan.com/

Brilliant, go see it, so original, so loved that! Very italian.

Side splittingly funny.

What delightfully energetic play! The performances alone capture the spirit of Commedia dell'Arte, on top of the marvelous production design and masterful direction. Highly recommend!

One of the best shows I've seen so far with an extremely talented cast and delightful musical moments. There's no dead time, it's so funny and lively and compelling from start to finish!
Excellent introduction to the commedia dell'arte. Give me more of this!

A classic comedic style done right! The energy of the cast was electric with brilliant performances across the board. Very funny throughout and with some lovely self accompanied music to tie the absurd hilarity all together. The best Commedia dell’Arte Troupe I have ever seen.

I had an absolute romp watching this! An absolutely fabulous show with gorgeous masks, absurd comedic acting, and great singing. High-energy and engaging throughout, with a super talented bunch of performers that had my sides splitting!

A bawdy romp expertly performed by a group of talented Anglo/Italian actors. A delight to watch. I hope they return in future years!

The utter ridiculousness of the commedia form may distract you from the fact that the cast is comprised of extremely talented comic actors, equally adept at improvisation and scripted comedic timing. Great costumes, gorgeous masks, and some extremely clever comedic moments. Definitely planning to watch again.

If you want fun, energetic, music and interaction, this is the show for you.
The use of the half masks to get you drawn into the Commedia dell’Arte art form and the whole story of which is very similar to “One man, two Gov’ner” you’ll be laughing from start to finish.

The Italians in England is exactly the kind of show I look for at the Edinburgh festival. It's hugely entertaining - and also feels like it offers a unique insight into what commedia dell'arte must have been like. The Italians in England is bawdy, cleverly staged, fast-paced, anarchic, hilarious and musical - and makes some of the best use of half mask I've ever seen. It's also one of the most purely joyous shows on the fringe. To me this show is a must see.

I don't think I stopped laughing for a second throughout this show, the energy was just contagious and the audience gets completely swept up into the chaos of it, whenever you thought you knew what was going to happen next, you were proved completely wrong in the most unexpected and creative way. I'd recommend this show to anyone looking for a good laugh this Fringe.

A brilliant troupe of performers, with a wonderfully silly story. Lots of laughs. I was so glad to get a chance to see this Commedia Dell'arte show. Thoroughly recommend.

This is a fantastic show. So educational about commedia and full of fantastic performances across the ensemble. We couldn't stop smiling! If you want to start your day in the best possible and most positive way, then look no further.

Wow - I absolutely loved this show! This is number 1 of the 25 shows I’ve been to this Fringe. Riotously hilarious and well acted by a troupe of talented performers.

Wonderful commedia show! 12.25 at Surgeon's Hall @spaceuk. The Italians in England by Action Theatre (Italy). High energy, utterly ridiculous, hysterically funny. Go see it. Congrats to all involved.

A profoundly comic experience delivered with great skill and real panache!

Absolutely loved this show. Hysterically funny. Extremely well presented. Been to 12 shows already, and this is in the top three.

Gloriously silly, hilariously risque and just all round fun. I laughed the whole way through. If you want the same and love your cute, old-style, slapstick, double-entendre, musically-dotted shows that feels like real commedia dell'Arte where the company just works well together, this is well worth it.

Go see this show! What an awesome use of the form, this commedia made me laugh way more than I expected to, and the physical comedy is clean and well rehearsed. Perfect place for a show like this. I guarantee you will laugh.

Very well done with your shows. I've had an array of people, friends, and staff telling me that they thought The Italians in England was very much their favourite show this year.

While it’s easier to throw a tomato and not hit a comedy act at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, some forms are less common than others. Particularly as some have simply slipped from
fashion or common playing. One such, is that of commedia dell’arte, the Renaissance-era form of semi-improvised, archetypically laden and painfully horny descendant of the old Roman masked farces, the Atellanae Fabulae. To remedy that, Italian company Action Theatre has brought a reworked version of a classic canovaccio (or scenario) of commedia dell'arte, Flaminio Scala’s Il Vecchio Geloso (The Jealous Old Man), a 16th-century bawdy farce, here performed entirely in English (except at moments where it's funnier not to).
The plot of the play centres around the convoluted scheme of the amorous young Venetian Oratio, who is hellbent on bedding the pretty young wife of the geriatric old man, Pantalone. With
the help of his eager idiot manservant, a pouch full of coins and the corrupt nature of the hired help in general, Oratio puts into motion a series of events to allow him to sneak off and bed her at a surprise lunch party in the house of a rich Doctor. This falls amidst a whole slew of other inter-character romances and antagonisms, all set around rich stereotypes of the period.
The particulars of the piece are more fun left to be seen onstage, as this is a truly unique form of comedy. Yet, needlessto say, there are a lot of slaps, mistaken identities and many, many references to sex. But the beauty here is in the grotesquery of the masks worn and the physical buffoonery, as well as the japes and jokes and the cast’s ability to bounce around the scenario in improvisational ways. It’s a rare chance to see such work done this well at the Fringe, and if you get into the spirit of things and sink a glass or two of vino beforehand, there’s every chance you’ll be rolling in the aisles by the finish.

This bawdy and highly enjoyable comic romp at TheSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall (Fleming Theatre) is one of the funniest shows you’re likely to see this festival season. The Action Theatre company use a professional cast of ten – large for a Fringe show – to bring to Edinburgh a project that originated in Turin. The show, spoken in English with pantomime Italian accents, is set in 1572 when a troupe of foreign actors visit the court of Elizabeth I to perform a play-within-a-play called The Jealous Old Man. With the wildly improbable and chaotic plot, period costume, melodramatic acting, and some characters wearing half-masks, many will recognise the dramatic genre as Commedia dell’Arte: the Renaissance theatre tradition that flourished in Europe in the time of Shakespeare. But you don’t need a degree in Theatre Studies to enjoy the fast-paced verbal and visual humour on display, which has more in common with Blackadder II than The Comedy of Errors. The characters in this sex-comedy are familiar stock types: Pantalone, the foolish old cuckold with an unfaithful young wife; predatory and lustful young men with an eye for the ladies; the Captain, a boastful braggart with feet of clay; the Doctor, the pompous host and master of the house in which a farcical dinner party is held; and a gaggle of male and female servants, some of whom are buffoons, others perhaps wiser than their masters. There are many very fine performances in this show, which draw laughter from the audience by making skilful use of melodramatic irony and innuendo. George Mouskoundi’s unmasked face, highly mobile eyebrows, and ranting braggadocio are ideal for the sword-waving Captain. Ina Lark and Simona Bisconti both have the electric eyes required for the smouldering temptresses they play. Aimee Hislop and Juliet Turnbull keep the action engaging by breaking the fourth wall with many a knowing glance at the audience. Samuel Wright, with his towering physique and wide eyes glaring through an almost infernal half-mask comes across like some sort of slapstick Beelzebub. Kuluk Helms gives Miranda Richardson a run for her money in her portrayal of a loopy Queen Elizabeth. (Apologies to those actors I haven’t mentioned due to lack of space – you were all great!) This is a very entertaining show with live music played on stage and some fine singing, including close harmony. At 50 minutes long, the time flew by and the sustained applause at the end was well deserved. The only fault I would pick is the choice of venue: the Fleming Theatre is a lecture auditorium with a very shallow rake for the seating. You’ll need to sit near the front for a good view if you’re on the short side. I’ll end by saying that the show’s director, Rupert Raison, is giving a talk about Commedia and Half- Mask theatre in the Symposium Hall at the same venue for one day only on 18th August at 11am. If you’re a theatre geek like me, maybe get yourself along to that, too?

It took a few minutes to adjust to commedia dell'arte style, but it quickly grew on me. The script is not strong, but that is only a small part of the show. The costume, masks and exaggerated acting are first rate. The actors blast through with gusto, and it's difficult not to be carried away by the Italian charm.

of view. The pacing also occasionally lagged a little between scene transitions. Sometimes it was full pelt and then faded a little, as if it had run our of steam, It didn’t last long but needs finessing. Overall, “The Italians in England” by Action Theatre Italy is a thoroughly entertaining story-show that captures and holds its audience with its lively performances and skilled combination of pantomime set pieces, clownish comedy and fast-paced dialogue and narrative. The well-set contrast between the loud, domineering Doctor and the quieter, sycophantic Pantalone adds texture to the character dynamics. There is a lot of fine character comedy work in this show. Despite minor inconsistencies, the production offers an impressive, well integrated theatre experience that is perfect for apre-lunch performance. With some refinements in pacing and physical clarity, Action Theatre Italy’s production has the potential to be even righter and more consistent. As it is, it is still well worth seeing and is very good indeed.

“Grazie mille, uno spettacolo fantastico ma non avevo dubbi! Very grateful for your invitation.”

“Bravi tutti! Commedia divertentissima, compagnia entusiasmante. Grandi anche le voci. Davvero un insieme ben riuscito!”

“Un capolavoro!”

“The Italians in England” ha inaugurato in grande stile “Rendez-Viù... Partenza scintillante… un distillato dei pregi della Commedia dell’Arte portato con brio e ritmo serrato sul palco da 13 interpreti - tutti bravissimi…”

“…uno spettacolo colto e popolare al tempo stesso, ancorato alle radici della commedia dell’arte cinquecentesca…”

“Così si inizia oggi alle 21 nel parco della villa con “The Italians in England”, pièce di Commedia dell’Arte per la regia di Rupert Raison, incarnata da 13 interpreti provenienti da tutta Europa… “The Italians in England” ha riscosso notevole successo nel 2024 al Festival di Edimburgo”

“Prosegue la rassegna teatrale Rendez-Viù, dopo il grande successo di “The Italians in England”, di Rupert Raison.”