Eine göttliche Komödie. Dante < > Pasolini

Statement of the Jury

Antonio Latella considers Dante and Pasolini, two major moralists of Italian literature, together in this work. Virgil’s descent into hell, described by Dante in the “Divine Comedy”, becomes a matrix for Pasolini’s conflict-ridden political and personal biography: The director was found murdered on the beach of Ostia in November 1975; his true killers were never identified. Through a haunting ritual, Latella perpetuates this murder on stage, reflecting Pasolini’s death in Dante’s journey through the circles of hell. The relationships and interlaced motives that he manages to describe are truly astonishing and have a detailed foundation in the subject matter. There is no grandstanding, everything is developed from the material with great earnestness. Latella’s artistic sincerity and his courageous readiness to employ grand gestures as well as a sort of vulnerable pathos are just as impressive as his sure grasp of form and the stupendous precision of the actors. A disturbingly brutal and tremendously delicate show.