Transcript Commedia dell’ Arte

By Oksana Pavlov
Italian Renaissance
Late 1300s to about the 1600s
Period of great cultural change and
achievement
Transition between Medieval and Early
Modern Europe
Rekindled interest in Greek and Roman
Thought,
Literature
Art
Two form of comedy in Italy:
Commedia erudite
 Learned comedy
 Private performances
Commedia dell’ Arte
 Popular comedy
 Professional and open to the public
Commedia dell'arte
"comedy of professional artists"
"comedy of humors"
Improvised Comedy
1550 - 1700
most popular between 1575 and 1650
Contents of Commedia dell’
Arte
Improvisation
Masked fools
Acrobatic tricks
Intrigue plots
Satire
Music
Its beginnings: ??
Before 16th century not much is known
Fragments from letters and diaries indicate
its existence before the 16th century
First mentioned in history in the 1560s
Two playwrights of Roman comedies are
credited for influencing Commedia dell’
Arte:
Titus Maccius Plautus: 254 BC – 184BC
Publius Terentius Afer (Terence): --159 BC
Place & Performance
 Drum announces the
actors’ arrival to a
city
 Performances held
almost anywhere:
 In town squares or
at courts
 Indoors or outdoors
 On improvised
stages or in
permanent theaters
Traveling troupe’s makeshift stage
Themes
Adultery
Jealousy
Old age
Love
Scripts
Rough storyline: summarization of the
situations, complications and the
outcome
Also called scenario or canvas
Actors perform spontaneously by
improvising their dialogues
Thus, details differed at every
performance
Actors
The heart of Commedia dell’ arte and the
only essential element
Usually 10-12 actors per troupe
7-8 male; 3-4 female
One actor rarely played more than one
character
Performances were spontaneous; thus
each actor must be quick and witty to
respond appropriately
Stock Characters
 The same characters
appeared in every play
 The most essential part
of Commedia
 Identified by their
costumes, masks or
props such as slapstick
 Divided into 3
categories:
 Lovers (Innamorati)
 Masters
 Servants (Zanni)
Lovers (Innamorati)
 Most realistic roles
 Young and handsome
 Did not wear masks
 Dressed in latest fashions
 Were children of the masters
 Come in obvious pairs
 Masculine and feminine versions of the same name
 I.e. Flavio and Flavia or Ottavio and Ottavia
 Dressed in similar colors
 Often required to sing, play an instrument or recite
poetry
 Lust, romance, vanity, and little sense were usually their
characteristics
Ottavio
Masters
 Pantalone
 Elderly Venetian merchant and
the father of one of the lovers
 Obsessed with money
 Mean and miserable
 Costume: tight-fitting red vest,
red breeches and stockings, soft
slippers, a black ankle-length
coat, a soft, brimless cap, a
brown mask with a large hooked
nose, and a scraggly gray beard
Masters
 Dottore
 Pantalone’s friend or rival
 Possessed a high profession such as lawyer or
doctor
 Loved to show off his “supposed wisdom”
through his speeches in Latin
 In reality, was gullible and easily tricked
 Dressed in academic cap and gown of the time
Masters
 Capitano
 Originally was a lover, but
over time transformed
into braggart and coward
 Boasted of his prowess in
love and war
 Costume: a cape, sword,
and feathered headdress
 Typically an unwelcome
 suitor to one of the young
women
Servants (Zanni)
2-4 per troupe—at least one clever and one
stupid
Most prominent are:
 Fantesca (female maid)
 La Ruffiana
 Cantarina and Ballerina
 Arlecchino (Harlequin)
 Male servant, usually went by the name Brighella,
Scapino, Mezzetino, or Flautino
 Pulcinello
Servants
 Fantesca (female maid)
 Normally young, witty, and ready for intrigue
 Had her own affair while assisting the
mistress with hers
 La Ruffiana
 An old woman, either the mother or a village
gossiper
 Whore
 Shady
 Cantarina and Ballerina often took part in the
comedy, but for the most part their job was to
sing, dance, or play music.
Servants
 Arlecchino (Harlequin)
 Also known as: Truffaldino and
Trivellino
 Originally of minor importance,
he soon became the most popular
 Was both cunning and stupid, a
stunning acrobat and dancer
 Could usually be found in the
middle of any intrigue
 Illiterate, but pretends to read
 Costume: evolved from a suit
with irregularly placed
multicolored patches into one
with a diamond-shaped red,
green, and blue pattern, a rakish
hat above a black mask, and a
slapstick
Servants
 Another male servant, usually went by the name
Brighella, Scapino, Mezzetino, or Flautino
 Harlequin’s partner
 Thrives on double dealings, intrigue, and foul
play
 Cynical liar and a thief—would do anything for
money
 Sleazy, seductive, and often cruel
 Witty, libidinous, and often cruel
 Costume: mask with a hooked nose and
moustache, a jacket and trousers ornamented
with a green braid
Servants
 Pulcinello
 A Neopolitan
 Had various functions
 Servant
 Host of an inn
 Merchant
 Had a huge hooked nose, a humped back, and
wore a pointed cap
 Cruel bachelor who chased pretty girls
 Ancestor of the English puppet Punch
Lazzi
Stage business
Humorous interjections which had
nothing to do with the play itself such
as:
Humorous remarks
Acrobatics
Juggling
Wrestling
Lazzi
Each actor has a notebook filled with
well-rehearsed comic action such as:
Sententious remarks
Figures of speech
Love discourses
Rebukes
Lazzi
Used to:
Fill up time
Occasionally amuse the audience
Create a change of pace
Lazzi
Different forms of Lazzi: Lazzo of…
Fear
Weeping and laughing
Knocking at the door
Fight
Influence of Commedia dell’ Arte
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By 1600s, it became popular in other European countries
Moliere—French playwright during 17th century
Punch and Judy show
Shakespeare’s plays such as “The Tempest”
The silent treatment of mime
Beaumarchais’ Le Barbier de Seville
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Innamorati of the Count and Rosine
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The zanni Brighella is Figaro
References
•
Ball, Robert J., and Oscar G. Brockett. The Essential Theatre. United
Kingdom: Thomson Wadsworth, 2000.
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Chaffee, Judith. Judith Chaffee’s Commedia Website. <
http://www.commedia-dell-arte.com/>
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Claudon, David. A Thumbnail History of Commedia Dell’ Arte. 15 Oct. 2003.
http://www.davidclaudon.com/arte/commedia.html
Commedia dell’ Arte. 20 Sep. 2006. Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commedia_dell%27arte
Herrick, Marvin T. Italian Comedy in the Renaissance. London: University
of Illinois Press, 1966.
Smith, Winifred. The Commedia Dell’ Arte. New York: Benjamin Blom, Inc,
1964.
End of Show!
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