About FEMALE PARTS

Female Parts was originally a one-woman show developed and performed by Franca Rame in 1977 under the title, All House, Bed, and Church. The work is a series of monologues, written with her husband, which expose problems women continue to face in the present day: problems within the family, in relationships, at work, and in society. The one-act plays are intimate theatrical pieces that strive to connect with both male and female audience members. In the true tradition of Fo and Rame’s theatre, the plays are satirical in nature and provoke reactions ranging from laughter to anger. The playwrights’ intention is not necessarily to antagonize audiences but to make them rethink issues that they deal with on a day-to-day basis.

About FO/RAME

Franca Rame is the co-author of many dramatic works, including All Home, Bed, and Church (1977), The Open Couple (1983), Female Parts (1986), A Woman Alone and Other Plays (1989), and Seventh Commandment: Steal a Little Less (1992). An actress, dramatist, and lecturer of international renown, Ms. Rame was born to a family of puppeteers who have been practicing their art for several generations, and began her acting career at the age of eight. She joined Dario Fo in the theatre in 1951 (and married him in 1954) and has since collaborated with him as stage performer, writer, and editor for dozens of plays and monologues.
Together Fo and Rame have established a worldwide reputation for biting satire in their writing and performances. The dangerous political issues that have been subjects of their theatre include corruption in the Catholic Church and the Italian government, police brutality, abuses in the prison system, violations of human rights, the Mafia, rape, and the denial of Italian women's access to divorce and abortion. Drawing on traditions ranging from the commedia dell'arte to puppetry, clowning, and storytelling, Fo and Rame have subjected every institution, political party, power broker, corrupt organization and controversial law in Italy to their formidable satirical powers. Over the years, they have been censored, banned, rebuked, denied visas - and played to packed houses all over the world.

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