COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE PROFESSORI GREGORI BARKINI

THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ITALY IN THE HIGH-MIDDLE AGES

Southern Italy in the 13th and 14th century was partitioned between many small countries

The Northern Part was highly developed because of the strong trade links after the crusades

The European economical boom of that era was highly experienced in Italy

The agriculture flourished in the inner city-states The Italian Mediterranean routes were also major

sources of knowledge and cultural exchange There were constant wars for dominance between the

city-states followed by a peaceful period at the end of 14th century

THE RENAISSANCE IN ITALY A period of Great cultural achievement in Europe,

it encompasses the period between the end of the 14th century to about 1600

The Italian Renaissance is considered to be the opening stage of the entire epoch in Europe

It marks the transition between the Medieval Ages to the Early Modern Age

The Italian Renaissance began in Tuscany, Florence and Siena

Some of the most important figures of the era are Petrarch, Machiavelli, Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Castiglione

As a cultural movement the Renaissance affected only small portions of the society

THE ITALIAN THEATRE The Ancient legacy was revived and this led to

occasional performances of Roman comedies in many small states in Italy – known as Neoclassicism

The initial purpose of the Italian Theatre was to reflect the glory and power of the current ruler

The Renaissance Drama began developing in Italy at that time, marking the end of medieval practices

Fantasy and supernatural elements were avoided in neoclassical plays

The chorus and soliloquies were also discouraged. Reality was stressed in drama plays along with plays that teach moral lessons

THE ITALIAN THEATRE (CONT) The creation of a frame (proscenium arch) for the painted

scenery became standard and remains so – the oldest theatre with permanent proscenium is Teatro Farnese in Parma, built in 1618

The themes and topics of the Italian plays were drawn from ancient mythology

At first the Italians did not have any permanent theatre halls. They used to set up temporary performance stages in large halls, used for different purposes

The acceptance of perspective scenery brought the foundation of movement from architectural to representational and pictorial stage – the stage can be modified according the specific production

SEBASTIANO SERLIO’S STAGE

A prominent Italian architect known for his high-quality illusions and plans for theatrical scenery and stages

COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE It means – “Comedy of Art” or “Comedy of the

profession” – opposite to the literary comedy “Commedia Erudita”

It began in the 15th century and kept its popularity until the late 18th century (still performed today in some theatres in Italy)

For the first time women had the right to participate in theatrical production (in contrast to the Elizabethan age). The number of female roles increased, even though these didn’t become as permanent and deep as the male characters

COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE

The troupe consisted usually of 10 people (7 men and 3 women), traveling around the country

The plays were supported at the beginning by donations, like modern street performers

The plays were held outside initially with poor props and modest costumes

Outside Italy it was known as “Italian Comedy” Improvised drama, implying the subject matter

of the play than the manner of performance of the actors

COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE The play was adjusted through improvisation

and most of the plays had a satiric character Characters in plays were portrayed by actors

wearing masks (except the lovers) Amusement in the form of acrobatics and

juggling was also provided The material was divided into acts and scenes

with a prologue The situation (scenario) had been clearly

determined and outlined, although the actors improvised the dialogue and the action to some extent

COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE The performances created the impression of

spontaneity because the behavior of the actors was quite unexpected by the other actors on the stage

The actor was the “heart” and the emphasis of the play

There were limited scenarios: they were tragic, melodramatic, musical, and most of them were comic, revolving around love affairs, intrigues and disguises

Many actors were required to record appropriate sentiments from poetry and popular literature

THE STOCK CHARACTERS Lovers – they had the most realistic roles. They gained

popularity very fast because they did not wear masks and were dressed according to the latest fashion trends at that time. Usually the “lovers” were children of the “Masters”. Their affairs were directly related to the opposition of their parents (cf Romeo and Juliet)

Masters – The plutocrats, rich merchants, bank owners and ship owners. E.g. Pantalone, Dottore, and Capitano. They had dual characteristics. They were intelligent and braggart, but later their controversial personality is revealed by the plot

Servants – Most of them were male actors. They were the most diversified part of the plays. E.g. – Arlecchino, Pulcinelo and others

THE STOCK CHARACTERS Arlecchino – a poor and illiterate servant from Bergamo, who

sought for his fortune in Venice. He is also an acrobat and a clown. Arlecchino was originally created in the French Theatre, but later he was adapted by the Italians

Brighella – A friend of Arlecchino, who is always the butt of the joke. He is often not allowed to do something but his eagerness brings him into very funny situations

Columbina – a maidservant, a lover of Arlecchino. She is intelligent and in many cases she gets involved into love intrigues and scandals

Pantalone – an old, rich and miserly merchant from Venice. He employs Arlecchino and treats him cruelly. He always speaks in a Venetian dialect

Pedrolino – A kind and courteous servant who has always been blamed for the others’ troubles and things he has never done.

THE MASKS They played crucial role in Commedia Dell’arte All personages (except the “lovers”) wore coloured

leather masks They were used to resemble and utilize the personages

and also to distinguish them from each other As a means of character identification they demanded

extremely advanced mimicry and sometimes acrobatics

Many of them were similar to masks used in the Ancient Roman Theatre

ZANNI – THE CLOWNS

The Zanni include… Brighella Columbina Arlecchino The clowns were typically servants in the scenarios, providing the laughter.

BRIGHELLA Personality

crafty, quick, unscrupulous thrives on double dealings,

intrigues, and foul play sometimes depicted as an

innkeeper, shop owner, valet, or soldier

cynical liar who only looks out for himself

He is sleazy, seductive, dangerous

He is a drunkard and boisterous

Physically lazy but can move quickly He slinks without muscular

effort Always ready to pounce He might blithely be

cleaning his nails with the knife which will soon cut a throat.

He gets very close to people when he speaks.

He can sing and dance, and drink with the best of them.

His costume is usually trimmed in green.

BRIGHELLA

COLUMBINA Personality

female servant fresh and frisky,

sometimes crafty, and often without morals

makes use of disguises, dressing up as doctors, cavaliers, barristers, and other servants

often the smartest character in a scenario

She was autonomous, self-sufficient and quite rational

Physically Columbina was not

afraid to show her buxom contours or flaunt her robust hips

She stands with hands on her hips, or holding a basket or tambourine, while flirting

COLUMBINA (SMERALDINA)

ARLECHINO Personality

like a 5-year-old eager to please his master or

mistress His first attention is to food:

how to get it, how to savour it

He loves tricks and physical antics

usually cannot read, which makes him confuse messages sent by lovers

He is ignorant yet clever; slow mentally but quick physically

Physically his lower back is arched his arms are often bent with

hands on his hips, in readiness to serve

His legs turn out, sometimes with heels together and other times with the back knee bent and the front leg straight.

He runs quickly and lightly, kicking his feet forward.

He sneaks to steal food with large, exaggerated, silent steps.

He can stop in an instant, especially when caught in one of his pranks.

ARLECHINO (TRUFFALDINO)

VECCHI Vecchi are the old men

characters. They are typically father figures or evil characters.

They include… - Pantalone - Il Dottore - Il Capitano

PANTALONE Personality

wealthy, paranoid, merchant Money is his obsession He is a master at

seducing beautiful young women

He suspects that everyone is out to deceive him

He complains about his physical ailments: aching back, bad knees, gout, etc. that conveniently come and go at his discretion

Physically His pelvis is tilted under but he

is not hunched over His knees are bent with his

heels together, toes pointing outward

he runs and walks heels first His hands and fingers actively

fidget in counting money or holding his money pouch

In spite of being old and sick, he is surprisingly agile

Pantalone usually has a curled, pointed beard, red leggings, and a long cape (denoting higher status)

PANTALONE

IL DOTTORE Personality

professes to know everything, but actually knows nothing

He loves to hear himself speak and expounds on answers, whether asked or not (but he is always wrong)

He claims to be a doctor of medicine, philosophy, science, law, language, literature, art, politics, or the classics, or all of them

He is a delightfully pretentious bag of wind

Physically His mask covers the

forehead and nose, signifying his heady thoughts and nosy intrusions

He bounces when he walks

uses his hands expressively to clarify his vivid ideas

IL DOTTORE

IL CAPITANO Personality

the cowardly braggart soldier

He is the foreigner in the scenario, speaking with an accent (or two)

enters to conquer arrogant foes, to rescue young damsels in distress, or to win the hearts of beautiful widows

He is, however, a wimp. He avoids fighting at all costs by deflecting conflicts, feigning death, or outsmarting aggressors

Physically long nose, signifying brawn

over brains (the longer the nose, the fewer the brains..)

He holds his weapon strongly and aggressively (anything from an old, rusty or crooked sword to a stick he thinks is a sword),

but doesn't really know how to use it

he stands tall and has a wide stance, with feet firmly planted

But when avoiding conflict he becomes small and shy, shriveling and shivering in fear

He can run very fast when necessary

IL CAPITANO (FLORINDO)

THE LOVERS The Lovers were the normal characters who were

typically being kept apart. They included… Leandro Inamorata (“the one who is in love”) • The Lovers did not typically wear masks. However,

they did wear heavy make-up. • The Lover, whether called Leandro, Flavio, Lelio or

Ottavio, is always charming, dapper, and sometimes a bit ridiculous. His sole purpose in the script is to be in love. He must be young, good looking, courteous and gallant.

• The Inamorata was a role originally played by men in France and England

THE LOVERS (SILVIO & CLARICE)

CARLO GOLDONI (1707-1793)

One of the Italy’s (Europe’s) Greatest playwrights, born in Venice in 1707

He attracted the theatre-goers by creating characters that were similar to them, and often through dramatizing the conflicts and dramas of the contemporary middle-classes

• Initially he wrote tragedies but later he found he is better in the comedy genre • His main idea was that the Italian life was susceptible to artistic treatment

“THE SERVANT OF TWO MASTERS” BY CARLO GOLDONI

Written in 1745 by Goldoni for a Venetian commedia dell’arte troupe

Pantalone and Brighella are presented with entirely new traits In contrast to other commedia plays, here the middle-class

characters were treated with respect and the women are much more sensible than the men

The cast of characters belongs to commedia (Arlecchino, Brighella etc.)

The coarse and sexual topics here are avoided The plot is based on disguise, coincidence and misunderstanding “The servant of two masters” does not achieve a high level of

characterization or social commentary

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

Different forms of Lazzi: • Weeping and laughing • Fear • Knocking at the door • Fight

WATCH COMMEDIA RESOURCES

A demonstration of the main characters

Modern interpretation of a Commedia scene

Some nice visuals