Commedia dell'Arte

In researching the various aspects of commedia dell'Arte, I was able to understand the components that create a good commedia piece. Commedia originated in the mid-16th century in Italy and continued through the 17th century in France. Commedia plays satirized local scandals or current events. Commedia consists of stock characters, improvisation, and several key props. Stock characters were the typical lovers, servants, masters, innamoratas (lovers) and old men. They used traditional names, standard costumes, and specific masks distinguishing their specific characters. Each character had a specific speech and reaction. Since each actor consistently portrayed the same character, the only changes would be the character's circumstances and the character's different relationships. The commedia play would revolve around the lovers' attempts to get married and the complications and misunderstandings that entail the relationship that they pursue throughout the play. Although commedia utilized improvisation, all the actors prepared stock speeches to ensure that they would not freeze on stage. Stock speeches were specific to each stock character and consisted of a general outline of what they would say. The slapstick was a key prop in commedia. It's used to create a loud, audible sound of slapping that consists of two pieces of wood hinged together to imitate a slapping sound when it hits the actor.

Commedia performers were sometimes referred to as mountebanks because they performed on outdoor, temporary stages. They would rely on various props to create the scenery. Commedia actors were the equivalent of modern celebrities. The key to their success was travelling to different performance venues in order to spread their fame. Each character represented a specific Italian town or district. In order to differentiate the characters, actors would use the specific dialect of the region that they represented. Each character was given one costume and one mask. In addition to improvisation, music and dance were central to commedia dell'arte so the young lover actors (innamorata) were expected to be able to sing and dance.