Can a theatrical performance conceived and written in a particular language be enjoyed by an audience that doesn’t understand that language? Does theatre have a specific language? This is not an easy question to respond to. An Italian 50-minute play titled The Acting Class presented by the group Scalambra on Thursday evening as part of the World Culture Festival organised by the Arts Council of Pakistan tried to answer the query in a playful manner.
Directed by Francesca Bizzarri and Goffredo Puccetti, the drama is nice little exploration of what constitutes the world of theatre and what really drives actors to perform on stage. When curtains are drawn, Bizzarri is up there in front of the audience. She is a seasoned actress who, a few minutes into the play, receives a young male student, an aspiring actor. The impulsive character that she is, the actress doesn’t care to inquire about his whereabouts and starts giving him lessons with a great deal of fervor. She has quite a few books placed on the table in front of her, which she picks up intermittently to point out the essential elements of theatre to the student. The boy in the meantime sits on a sofa, with a bewildered look. All her instructions are in the Italian language and he appears to be flummoxed.
Italian group stages The Acting Class as part of World Culture Festival
Even if the audience at the Arts Council didn’t understand what she was saying, the fact that she while tutoring takes names such as that of Dario Fo or Pirandello clearly indicates that the actress is talking about the art of drama writing which involves actors to say what’s penned by the dramatist.
The emphasis on the physical aspect of the art form enables the young student to follow the instructions which at times borders on antics. But it’s all fun. The question remains, though: does the student understand what is he being taught in Italian?
The Acting Class is a good attempt to put across the message, in a lighter vein, that art is to be felt, not to be understood. If the audience is feeling what’s being said in whichever way, the job is done.
And the job was done on Thursday.
Published in Dawn, December 6th, 2025
