Salvatore Gatto
This was a genuine Neapolitan street show, complete with Pulcinella, and it was a total delight. Even though it was nothing more than a string of classic commedia dell’arte gags and literal punch lines, it was magic in the hands of a professional like Gatto. He entered the booth looking for Pulchinella after having accompanied himself on the guitar with a typical street song. With the expertise of an instrumentalist, he used hardwood puppet heads and hands as percussion instruments in conjunction with slapsticks and the play board in vignettes that always culminated in violently hilarious encounters between Pulcinella and a cast of puppets including his girlfriend, a lion, a man-on-the-street. The show’s biggest laughs came during a struggle involving our hero, a coffin, and Death itself where this resilient little guy proved himself to be the life force personified.
