La famiglia è tutto: Family is everything. Reviewed by Mary Alderson It’s a typical, traditional 1959 weekend in Naples, Italy. On Saturday, all the activity is in the kitchen as food is prepared for the next day. On Sunday, the extended family gathers to eat dinner. On Monday, the family tries to make right the issues that occurred at Sunday dinner. Eduardo De Filippo wrote the play Saturday, Sunday, Monday in post-war Italy. Not only was it set in 1959, but De Filippo wrote the play and it premiered all in that same year. So this story feels very authentic, and in the program Antoni Cimolino, who adapted and directed this play, tells us that De Filippo’s own marriage was falling apart at that time. Cimolino is obviously a fan of De Fillippo – in 2018 he directed Napoli Milionaria! and Grand Magic in 2023. Now Saturday, Sunday, Monday is wrapping up Cimolino’s time as Artistic Director of Stratford Festival. The play opens to a big Italian kitchen: the attention to detail is amazing. A pot is simmering on the stove, with steam rising in the air. There is even a whiff of Italian cooking. It takes much of the first act to introduce the characters and establish all the relationships. In total, there are 17 actors playing the roles: no actors playing multi-roles here, each character is quite individual. There is a large extended family, plus visitors: their neighbours (an accountant and his wife), and a maid with her unhappy brother, a tailor, and a doctor. The family is led by Rosa, played perfectly by Rose Napoli. She takes the preparation of Sunday dinner quite seriously, and has control of the kitchen. Her husband is Peppino, with Graham Abbey in the role. He is obviously angry and disgruntled in the ...