A theatre at risk

The jazz-actor Leo de Berardinis, the king of improvisation

Abstract

The paper aims to investigate – with particular reference to the 1977-1983 creative phase – the importance assumed by the improvisation, on an aesthetic and political level, within Leo de Berardinis’ scenic and acting work of. This device needs to be understood, in full consonance with the jazz modules on which Leo’s art is based, as a “variation on a theme” (as repeatedly reiterated by the actor-author himself in his interviews), but also in the terms of eroding a pre-established action, questioning the concept of “reply”, or also implementing a risk in front of the spectators. The exploration intends on the one hand to give an account, through careful reconnaissance, of Leo’s major statements regarding the improvisational practice (up to his theories on the jazz actor), on the other hand to verify these statements in stage praxis, thanks to a lunge linked with Assoli, the show which marked Leo and Perla’s re-emergence from the marginalized town of Marigliano. At the same time, an attempt will be made to highlight de Berardinis’ propensity for an actorial dramaturgy, exquisitely consumptive and open to the interaction with the audience.