What You Need to Know About Commedia DellArte

Commedia dellarte, also known as Italian comedy, was a humorous theatrical presentation performed by professional actors who traveled in troupes throughout Italy in the 16th century. Performances took place on temporary stages, mostly on city streets, but occasionally even in court venues. The better troupes — notably Gelosi, Confidenti, and Fedeli — performed in palaces and became internationally famous once they traveled abroad. Music, dance, witty dialogue, and all kinds of trickery contributed to the comic effects. Subsequently, the art form spread throughout Europe, with many of its elements persisting even into the modern theater. Given the vast number of  Italian dialects, how would a touring company make itself understood? Apparently, there was no attempt made to change the performances dialect from region to region. Even when a local company performed, much of the dialogue would not have been understood. Regardless of region, the oft-used character  il Capitano  would have spoken in Spanish,  il Dottore  in Bolognese, and  lArlecchino  in utter gibberish. The focus was placed on physical business, rather than spoken text. Influence The impact of  commedia dell’arte  on European drama can be seen in French pantomime and the English harlequinade. The ensemble companies generally performed in Italy, although a company called the  comà ©die–italienne  was established in Paris in 1661. The  commedia dell’arte  survived the early 18th century only by means of its vast influence on written dramatic forms. Props There were no elaborate sets in  commedia. Staging, for example, was minimalistic, with rarely anything more than one market or street scene, and the stages were frequently temporary outdoor structures. Instead, great use was made of props including animals, food, furniture, watering devices, and weapons. The character  Arlecchino  bore two sticks tied together, which made a loud noise on impact. This gave birth to the word slapstick. Improvisation In spite of its outwardly anarchic spirit, commedia dellarte  was a highly disciplined art requiring both virtuosity and a strong sense of ensemble playing. The unique talent of  commedia  actors was to improvise comedy around a pre-established scenario. Throughout the act, they responded to each other, or to the audiences reaction, and made use of  lazzi  (special rehearsed routines that could be inserted into the plays at convenient points to heighten the comedy), musical numbers, and impromptu dialogue to vary the happenings on stage. Physical Theater Masks forced actors to project their characters emotions through the body. Leaps, tumbles, stock gags (burle  and  lazzi), obscene gestures, and slapstick antics were incorporated into their acts. Stock Characters The actors of the  commedia  represented fixed social types. These types included  tipi fissi, for example, foolish old men, devious servants, or military officers full of false bravado. Characters such as Pantalone (the miserly Venetian merchant), Dottore Gratiano (the pedant from Bologna), or Arlecchino (the mischievous servant from Bergamo), began as satires on Italian types and became the archetypes of many of the favorite characters of 17th- and 18th-century European theatre. Arlecchino  was the most famous. He was an acrobat, a wit, childlike, and amorous. He wore a cat-like mask and motley-colored clothes and carried a bat or wooden sword.Brighella  was  Arlecchinos  crony. He was more roguish and sophisticated, a cowardly villain who would do anything for money.Il Capitano  (the captain) was a caricature of the professional soldier — bold, swaggering, and cowardly.Il Dottore  (the doctor) was a caricature of learning who was pompous and fraudulent.Pantalone  was a caricature of the Venetian merchant, rich and retired, mean and miserly, with a young wife or an adventurous daughter.Pedrolino  was a white-faced, moonstruck dreamer and the forerunner of the modern clown.Pulcinella, as seen in the  English Punch and Judy shows, was a dwarfish humpback with a crooked nose. He was a cruel bachelor who chased pretty girls.Scarramuccia, dressed in black and carrying a pointed sword, was the Robin Hood of his day.The handsome  Inamorat o  (the lover) went by many names. He wore no mask and had to be eloquent in order to perform speeches of love.The  Inamorata  was his female counterpart; Isabella Andreini was the most famous. Her servant, usually called  Columbina, was the beloved of Harlequin. Witty, bright, and given to intrigue, she developed into such characters as Harlequine and Pierrette.La Ruffiana  was an old woman, either the mother or a village gossip who thwarted the lovers.Cantarina  and  Ballerina  often took part in the comedy, but for the most part, their job was to sing, dance, or play music. There were many other minor characters, some of which were associated with a particular region of Italy, such as  Peppe Nappa  (Sicily),  Gianduia  (Turin),  Stenterello  (Tuscany),  Rugantino  (Rome), and  Meneghino  (Milan). Costumes The audience was able to pick up on the type of person actors were representing through each characters dress. For elaboration, loose-fitting garments alternated with very tight, and jarring color contrasts opposed monochrome outfits. Except for the inamorato, males would identify themselves with character-specific costumes and half-masks. The  zanni  (precursor to clown), such Arlecchino, for example, would be immediately recognizable because of his black mask and patchwork costume. While the inamorato and the female characters wore neither masks nor costumes unique to that personage, certain information could still be derived from their clothing. Audiences knew what members of the various social classes typically wore, and also expected certain colors to represent certain emotional states. Masks All the fixed character types, the figures of fun or satire, wore colored leather masks. Their opposites, typically pairs of young lovers around whom the stories revolved, had no need for such devices. In modern Italian  handcrafted theater, masks  are still created in the ancient tradition of  carnacialesca. Music The inclusion of music and dance into  commedia  performance required that all actors have these skills. Frequently at the end of a piece, even the audience joined in on the merrymaking.