Macbett, by Eugène Ionesco, 1972

A lucid reflection on madness and human senselessness in the insatiable lust for power, Eugène Ionesco’s Macbett (1972) offers a particularly timely modern rewriting of the Shakespearean tragedy. The chaos of the contemporary world, also marked by the loss of authenticity of the logos, is here represented in a grotesque key, with a poetics that is in many ways indebted to the archetype of materialistic and political greed of Alfred Jarry’s père Ubu (1896). In the context of a burlesque and exuberant absurdity, the character of the great tragic characters is thus reduced to fanfare and ridiculous and pompous solemnity. After all, in the words of Ionesco, it is precisely humor that “makes us aware, with free lucidity, of the tragic or derisive condition of man”. The staging of Macbett proposed by us presents an essential version of Ionesco’s work, with a direction focused on the actor’s play in close dialogue with the original text and with sound, noise and musical accompaniment.

Ensemble

Actors: Siyuan Chen, Viola Cicoria, Olivia Del Sante, Pablo Comune, Stefano Martelli, Giovanni Pessina, Aurora Matilde Viola Sempio, Giulia Tonello, Gabriele Vaschetti
Music: Andrea D’Oria
Lights (creation): Sara Marenco. Light designer: Marco Usmigli
(since May 2026) Costumes: Giulia Tonello, Sara Marenco
Direction: Leonardo Mancini

Duration: 1 hour
Tech rider / Press

Thanks to: Ivana Ferri, Bruno Maria Ferraro (Teatro Tangram, Torino); Silvia Battaglio.

Previous performances

22/05/2025: Festival de théâtre universitaire "Meraki", Lyon, France
02/07/2025: Tingeltangel, Turin, Italy
07/09/2025: Festival Mirabilia, Cuneo, Italy
10-11/01/2026: Piccolo Teatro Comico, Torino, Italy
21/02/2026: Àrhat Teatro, Pontirolo Nuovo, Bergamo, Italy

Trailer

Photographies: Adam Hamadou