2017 Edinburgh Fringe

Interview

Three questions with Italian political comedian Francesco De Carlo.

What's it like performing in a second language?

It's fun. It's very hard to describe the feeling, it's a kind of like tickling your mind, because to make people laugh through a second language you use a part of your brain that you never use in other situations. Then there is the great feeling of talking to a wider audience, to people you probably would never have met otherwise. You are forced to go for universal subjects, which doesn't mean basic topics, but to write something that can work in any time and space. Obviously my Italian accent makes everything sound a little silly, even when I talk about very profound and personal stuff. Can you imagine Hamlet's monologues with an Italian accent? But it works very well with Super Mario.

Differences are always interesting when it comes to comparing different countries, but what's the most surprisingly similar thing you've found about Britain and Italy?

To be honest, in Britain I've found good weather, a bad economy and laughable politicians: I feel at home. I believe that there are some international phenomena affecting our societies that differ very little between these two countries. There are growing divisions between cities and the countryside, poor people and rich people, younger generations and older generations. Also, there is a general distrust of the political class that in Italy, we know very well. This makes gaps between different people much wider, despite us being in an era in which we (and politicians) should do the best we can to fill these gaps with tolerance and mutual support. And, last but not least, in both countries there are the best Bloody Marys I have ever drunk.

What's Brexit like from a non-UK perspective?

It's a great opportunity. I believe that before the EU referendum we were experiencing a phase of political apathy which is the worst situation for a generation to be in because without proper cultural turmoil there are few chances to progress. In Italy, during the Berlusconi government, we had an explosion of political satire. I'm not sure if this is truly helpful from a political point of view, but it's undoubtedly a good way to explore new forms of art and communication. If I'm not wrong, this is what happened in the UK with the outbreak of alternative comedy. So, I believe that Brexit, which is a very bad decision for sure (especially for the British economy), could represent a really good opportunity to be engaged and try to make this planet a nicer place to meet new people and drink a perfect Bloody Mary.