Lu Santo Jullàre Françesco

The year 2026 marks 800 years since the death of St Francis of Assisi, Italy’s patron saint and one of the world’s most beloved saints. It also marks 100 years from the birth of Italian playwright, actor, and Nobel Prize laureate Dario Fo and ten years from his passing. For this occasion, Matthias Martelli, Fo’s histrionic artistic heir, and director Leo Muscato, who divides his work between prose productions and major opera stagings worldwide, have decided to collaborate on a new production of Lu Santo Jullàre Françesco. Once again, they offer the poignant and ironic story that has become a true archetype of Italy’s narrative heritage. In perfect Fo style, the centre of the stage is filled with the actor’s body and voice via his gestures, facial expressions, and jesterlike energy. The actor becomes the protagonist of this unique alchemy, blending poetry with comedy, the sacred with the profane.