Commedia dell'Arte

During the Renaissance,Comedia dell'Arte was born, but you can trace its origin back to Greek mime and Artellan farce. Commedia dell'Arte is improvisation with masks that portray stock characters. Literally Commedia dell'Arte means artistic comedy. This art form had great success in the second half of the sixteenth century. Commedia dell'Arte focused on physical comedy rather than dialog making it able to transcend from region to region where dialects differed. The ensemble traveled by wagon to perform for the elite and the common. From the sixteenth to the eighteenth century this art form found its way to stages in France and England. The basic elements of Commedia dell'Arte are prevalent in today's television sitcoms.
A performance would include a story with a popular theme of the time and was distinguished by comic bonds that tied the action together. This is called lazzi, from the word lacci meaning trick, to evoke a quick laugh. The actors would portray the same stock characters. These characters were given characteristics over time that became standard for each performance. The introduction of women into Commedia dell'Arte came much later and the the women actors did not don masks. The audience spurs on the characters actions, the actors performance depends on how the audience is responding. Each production would include in it a story, a climax, a love scene, and acrobatic stunts.
There were many characters but pictured is Il Capitano (the Captain) originally an Italian character that later on became Spanish. The Captain was portrayed as a soldier that "talked" a brave fight. When Il Capitano had lost favor with the audience Scaramouche was born. Scaramouche was more of a gigolo than a soldier. This character started as a soldier and through the actor created a life of his own. Tiberio Fiorilli often played Scaramouche and with such flair that he became forever associated with the character. Fiorilli received applause and success wherever he performed. Pantalone was a venetian merchant. He was depicted as greedy, rich, and naive. The other characters would use Pantalone to get at his riches. A quote that became famous was "e Pantalone paga!!!!!" which means Pantaloon has to pay.                                                                                                                                                        





















                                                                Works Cited

Bellinger, Martha Fletcher. "A Short History of the Drama. pp. 153-157 " Theatre History.com. 2011.

Web. 23 September 2011. http://www.theatrehistory.com/italian/commedia_dell_arte001.htlm

Ducharte, Pierre Louis. The Italian Comedy. New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1966. Print.

Felner, Mira and Claudia Orenstein. The World of Theatre: Tradition and Innovation. Boston: Pearson

Education Inc., 2006. Print.