In 1950, Fo asked to work with Franco Parenti on a variety show performed by radio actors, beginning a collaboration that would last until 1954.
Fo delighted audiences with stories of his upbringing, which Parenti was very impressed by, describing them as "absolutely original, with an extraordinary humour, wit and personification.
When the show was over we'd go for walks round the lake and he'd tell me more stories.
In this way we originated a project in which we would work together on a new type of revue, one which didn't copy reality, but which involved people and took a stand."

In late 1951, after Fo had gained experience with Parenti, Italian national radio station RAI invited Fo to perform a solo Saturday evening comedy series Poer nano (Poor thing), airing after Parenti's Anacleto the Gas Man.
Fo created 18 adult fairy tale monologues adapted from biblical and historical tales.
The series also featured Shakespearean tales with various twists, such as a version of Hamlet in which the titular character kills his father to continue an affair with his mother; Ophelia is portrayed as Hamlet's uncle's transvestite mistress, while Horatio plays the ghost of Hamlet's father dressed up as a sheet and only appears when Hamlet is drunk.
The series also featured an albino Othello and a sadistic Juliet who keeps Romeo in her garden with savage dogs.
Scandalised authorities cancelled the show.
Nevertheless, Fo performed it on stage at the Teatro Odeon in Milan in 1952, which allowed him to develop the gesture and action not required for radio.
Also in 1952, Fo performed Cocoricò with Giustino Durano, which featured a 20-minute sketch focusing on the plight of black people in the United States.

In 1953, Fo—in collaboration with Parenti and Durano in their own revue company which they called I Dritti (The Stand-ups)—co-wrote, co-directed and designed the sets and costumes for a revue called Il dito nell'occhio (A finger in the eye).
In these early years, Fo has been influenced by the italian tradition of the actor-author, just like Ettore Petrolini.
 The title of his first revue referred to that of a column in the Italian Communist Party (PCI) newspaper l'Unità.
Il dito nell'occhio consisted of 21 sketches similar in style to Poer nano but dealing instead with a satirical history of the world.
The last performance, in which Fo played a supporting role, was a box-office success and went on tour after 113 performances at Milan's Piccolo Teatro.
1953 also brought the beginning of Fo's songwriting.
He collaborated with Fiorenzo Carpi; all of Fo's plays as far as 1967 would feature Carpi's music. "
La luna è una lampadina" ("The moon is a lightbulb"), their first song, is one of Fo's most famous.

Fo met Franca Rame, daughter of a theatrical family, when they were working in the revue Sette giorni a Milano.
They became engaged, and married on 24 June 1954.
They had a son, Jacopo (born 31 March 1955), who would also become a writer.

With the break-up of I dritti due to financial failure, Fo and family moved to Rome where he hoped to gain work as a screenwriter in the cinema.
There they lived next door to Roberto Rossellini and Ingrid Bergman.
Fo worked on many productions, including those of Dino De Laurentiis.
Rame worked in Teatro Stabile of Bolzano.
In 1956, Fo co-wrote and acted with Rame in the Carlo Lizzani's film Lo svitato (The screwball), influenced by Jacques Tati, Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin.
In the film, Fo plays "a disoriented hotel porter cast adrift in a neo-capitalist Milan of skyscrapers and modern technology".
Other films followed.

In 1958, the couple returned to Milan when Rame was offered roles in a series of farces at the Arlecchino Theatre.
Fo and Rame were subsequently based there.
Fo said, "For me the lesson of the cinema meant learning from a technical point of view what audiences had already grasped: a story divided into sequences, a fast pace, sharp dialogue, and getting rid of the conventions of space and time.
Working on screenplays gave me an apprenticeship as a playwright and I was able to transfer the
In 1950, Fo asked to work with Franco Parenti on a variety show performed by radio actors, beginning a collaboration that would last until 1954. Fo delighted audiences with stories of his upbringing, which Parenti was very impressed by, describing them as "absolutely original, with an extraordinary humour, wit and personification. When the show was over we'd go for walks round the lake and he'd tell me more stories. In this way we originated a project in which we would work together on a new type of revue, one which didn't copy reality, but which involved people and took a stand."
In late 1951, after Fo had gained experience with Parenti, Italian national radio station RAI invited Fo to perform a solo Saturday evening comedy series Poer nano (Poor thing), airing after Parenti's Anacleto the Gas Man. Fo created 18 adult fairy tale monologues adapted from biblical and historical tales. The series also featured Shakespearean tales with various twists, such as a version of Hamlet in which the titular character kills his father to continue an affair with his mother; Ophelia is portrayed as Hamlet's uncle's transvestite mistress, while Horatio plays the ghost of Hamlet's father dressed up as a sheet and only appears when Hamlet is drunk. The series also featured an albino Othello and a sadistic Juliet who keeps Romeo in her garden with savage dogs. Scandalised authorities cancelled the show. Nevertheless, Fo performed it on stage at the Teatro Odeon in Milan in 1952, which allowed him to develop the gesture and action not required for radio. Also in 1952, Fo performed Cocoricò with Giustino Durano, which featured a 20-minute sketch focusing on the plight of black people in the United States.
In 1953, Fo—in collaboration with Parenti and Durano in their own revue company which they called I Dritti (The Stand-ups)—co-wrote, co-directed and designed the sets and costumes for a revue called Il dito nell'occhio (A finger in the eye). In these early years, Fo has been influenced by the italian tradition of the actor-author, just like Ettore Petrolini.  The title of his first revue referred to that of a column in the Italian Communist Party (PCI) newspaper l'Unità. Il dito nell'occhio consisted of 21 sketches similar in style to Poer nano but dealing instead with a satirical history of the world. The last performance, in which Fo played a supporting role, was a box-office success and went on tour after 113 performances at Milan's Piccolo Teatro. 1953 also brought the beginning of Fo's songwriting. He collaborated with Fiorenzo Carpi; all of Fo's plays as far as 1967 would feature Carpi's music. "La luna è una lampadina" ("The moon is a lightbulb"), their first song, is one of Fo's most famous.
Fo met Franca Rame, daughter of a theatrical family, when they were working in the revue Sette giorni a Milano. They became engaged, and married on 24 June 1954. They had a son, Jacopo (born 31 March 1955), who would also become a writer.
With the break-up of I dritti due to financial failure, Fo and family moved to Rome where he hoped to gain work as a screenwriter in the cinema. There they lived next door to Roberto Rossellini and Ingrid Bergman. Fo worked on many productions, including those of Dino De Laurentiis. Rame worked in Teatro Stabile of Bolzano. In 1956, Fo co-wrote and acted with Rame in the Carlo Lizzani's film Lo svitato (The screwball), influenced by Jacques Tati, Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. In the film, Fo plays "a disoriented hotel porter cast adrift in a neo-capitalist Milan of skyscrapers and modern technology". Other films followed.
In 1958, the couple returned to Milan when Rame was offered roles in a series of farces at the Arlecchino Theatre. Fo and Rame were subsequently based there. Fo said, "For me the lesson of the cinema meant learning from a technical point of view what audiences had already grasped: a story divided into sequences, a fast pace, sharp dialogue, and getting rid of the conventions of space and time. Working on screenplays gave me an apprenticeship as a playwright and I was able to transfer the
Dario Fo