The Little Dictator

How to Become the Boss – A Manual!

Right in the middle of chess class, the pieces stage a rebellion: they’ve had enough of their grumpy chess teacher’s orders. In the drop of a hat, the class turns into a lecture on dictatorship, explaining how to become the boss in just a few moves: with scapegoats, fear, fake news, and plenty of nastiness.

At the push of a button, a radio is switched on regularly to make important announcements. But little by little, this radio takes on a strange life of its own and eventually teams up with the chess pieces! Sassy replies, surprising twists, and funny situations invite you to form your own opinion.

Based on Michela Murgia’s satirical guide How to Become a Fascist: A Manual, this play unfolds as a clever, humorous exploration of authoritarian tactics—and of why democracy, while demanding, is indispensable. In eight (chess) moves, the play guides the audience through the strategies of populist power: creating enemies, stoking fear, posing as a savior, defaming, lying, playing the victim, deploying populism, and finally, distorting history.

In the end, it is the chess pieces that defeat the self-proclaimed “boss” using his own tactics. “The Little Dictator” – a nod to Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator – playfully reveals the mechanisms of power and manipulation with humor, imagination, and without pointing fingers.