An hilarious, sharply satirical take on individual responsibility and politics. It depicts working class people who are fed up with the high prices in the supermarket, frustrated by constant strikes and so take the law into their own hands in a, rather familiar sounding, climate of economic downturn. Fast and furious comic chaos - Fo's farce is, quite literally, a riot!

Although set in Milan during the 1970s in a period of political radicalization and frequent strike actions in Italy;  the climate and problems seem somewhat familiar to today’s face of rising unemployment and current economic climate.  Price increases, religion, the ineffectual nature of the police force as well as a general dissatisfaction with the state are highlighted by Fo's relentless use of farce, ridicule and slapstick comedy. The play predicted the spread of an incredulous phenomenon and two weeks after the opening of the play, people took to paying what they considered to be a reasonable price and no more.