Raffaello Baldini

Raffaello "Lello" Baldini (24 November 1924 – 28 March 2005), was an Italian poet in the Romagnol language.

Born in Santarcangelo di Romagna in 1924, Baldini was part of the town's literary-artistic circle, which met in a bar owned by his parents, and associated with fellow poets Tonino Guerra and . After graduating from the University of Bologna in 1949, he spent some years teaching in local secondary schools, before moving to Milan in 1955, where he worked as a journalist for , , and then ''Panorama''.

Baldini's first publication was ''Autotem'' (1967), a short comedy satirising fetishes for cars. '''' (1976) was Baldini's first collection of poems written in Romagnol, and was followed by '''' (1995), which won the Bagutta Prize, and ''Intercity'' (2000), which is considered among Baldini's best works. As well as poems, Baldini wrote several theatrical monologues, such as '''' (1993), and (1998), which won the Viareggio Prize. Baldini's style is described as surreal, grotesque, or dramatic, exploring the anxieties of the human condition through the monologues of ordinary people.

Baldini died in 2005. His works continue to be staged in theatres, and in 2018, Baldini was the subject of a documentary film by Silvio Soldini. Provided by Wikipedia