Part of Teatro Nuovo's provocative Mishima series, Il mio amico Hitler was repeated after its successful run last season. Written two years before the author committed ritual suicide in 1970, the play is sensationalistic precisely because no value judgments are offered regarding any of the characters. Hitler has summoned steel magnate Krup, elite assault troops head Rohm, and confidant and resident leftist Strasser to his study in 1934, immediately before the "night of the long knives" commemorated in Visconti's film, "The Dammed."
As a "reward" for their securing his leadership position in Germany, Hitler determines that the assault troops must be eliminated and its head Rohm assassinated. Faced with this ever-clearer reality, Rohm falls into the trap and provides all the justifications Hitler needs to execute his plan. Ever the practical realist, aging Krupp seeks to logically convince Rohm of the inevitability of his demise via a long discussion of ideals. Rohm's capabilities as a soldier have not prepared him for the court intrigue and changing objectives of the Hitler administration. Another soon-to-be loser, Strasser, clings to his personal political ideals in the face of Hitler's sharp turn to the right. For his part, Krup is shown secure in knowing that he would always be needed as manager/industrialist.
In this production, Hitler's lines were at times divided between an actor and an actress, both identically attired in black, this to symbolize the feminine and masculine sides of his personality. Mishima has Hitler speaking mostly in regal fashion in the third person. The effective set consists of a black and white plan of Berlin as a backdrop with a ramp leading up to the window where Hitler would occasionally speak to the populace. Stark overhead lighting creates the proper mood, but the actors are often in darkness and their facial expressions not visible. Appearing between the scenes, a countertenor sings ironic texts in three languages.
