Comparing Commedia

In performing our Commedia piece, a prominent issue throughout the entire performance was our lack of ability to remain in character. It was extremely difficult to not break character as certain awkward moments or certain humorous scenes came up. I portrayed the extremely old and aged man trying to vie for Alexandra's affection in addition to il capitano and the ten-year old courtier/prince. My characterization was that I had intense diarrhea and so I would portray myself with my back constantly hunched over. In addition to hunching my back, I would have erratic spurts in which I would my diarrhea would come and go. Once the audience began to laugh at my character, I could not help but to break character with a mere smile. I've come to realize the difficulty of maintaining the character because it is very easy for actors to slip and allow their own selves to be portrayed. It seemed that because we didn't have a script to practice off of and to make ourselves comfortable with, the lines that we improvised along the way oftentimes got funnier. And because we didn't quite expect what the other actors were going to say, these words caused us to break character as we would process what the other actor had said and realize the humor.

The other Commedia performance was more successful than our production because the actors in the other group had utilized more Commedia elements such as exaggerated lazzis and extreme stock characters. Their use of the stairs to act as a balcony was an innovative stage as it broke away from the typical staging of the classroom. The setting only added to their performance as it gave the production levels and tiers rather than remaining one-leveled or one-dimensional. This particular piece also used the idea of mistaken identities to its advantage through the use of the twins: Jackie and Natalie. It was evident that this devising group had used everything to their advantage to enhance their performance. The use of the slapstick, a prominent Commedia element added to the humor. Trish and Jackie's relationship was extremely humorous with the use of accents and physicality. Overall, the other group had put forth a more successful performance because they had utilized and emphasized Commedia elements as well as using other elements to their advantage such as the idea of mistaken identities, props, and staging.