fare scena

Italian

Etymology

Literally, “to do scene”.

Verb

fàre scena (first-person singular present fàccio scena, first-person singular past historic féci scena, past participle fàtto scena, first-person singular imperfect facévo scena, second-person singular imperative fài scena or fà' scena, auxiliary avére)

1. (intransitive, idiomatic) to perform; to act
   • 2020, Barack Obama, translated by Chicca Galli, Paolo Lucca, and Giuseppe Maugeri, Una terra promessa [A Promised Land], Garzanti Libri:

     Tirare fuori il meglio anziché il peggio di quelle emozioni; puntellare quel lato tanto prezioso della nostra natura con la ragione e la buona politica; fare scena senza per questo smettere di dire la verità: ecco l’asticella che dovevo superare.

     To elicit the best rather than the worst of those emotions, to buttress those better angels of our nature with reason and sound policy, to perform while still speaking the truth—that was the bar I needed to clear.

     (literally, “To bring out the best rather than the worst of those emotions; to prop up that very precious side of our nature with reason and good politics; to perform without thereby not telling the truth: here is the bar that I had to clear.”)