Unfinished Zani mask by Antonio Fava. The leather is untreated and a line stitching can be seen.

THE SCENARIOS and STAGES

• The scenarios are impossible to reproduce in modern time because you need a good troupe of improvisators

• The stages were portable (as high as eye level) and had two curtains: the drop curtain(backdrop) and the fore curtain.
  
  
  

THE RENAISSANCE TROUPES 

• These troupes still performed in dialect and stage action was lively and as lifelike as possible.
• The Gelosi's emblem was: "Virtu', fama ed onor ne ser'gelosi" (they were jealous of attaining virtue, fame and honour)
• Up to 1680s the Italian players had remained faithful to the tradition of the Commedia (12 to a troupe etc) after the troupes became larger, french phrases were inserted in the dialogue but the ROLES remained the same.
• Goldoni is famous in the Italian Comedy, he wrote more than 150 plays. 
• Gheraldi had a collection of 40-60scenarios, in the Italian style with French repartee. 
• from the middle of the 18th century the art of improvisation was deteriorating therefore songs and music soon took over the dialogue. 

THE MARIONETTES

Harlequin and Pantaloon.

• developed at the same time as the Italian Comedy
• Their origin could be from the Atellanae.
• Lamia (Africa ghoul) and Manducus (ancient ogre) came into existance originally as marionettes. 
• Manducus developed into the Captain!
• Burattino was the name of the leading character. It now means marionette in modern Italian.

THE MASKS

• masks are man's aspiration to a divine countenance/desire to astonish and terrify others. 
• In the I.C. masks were used because everyday man with no imagination prefers familiar things to novelty. People prefer to see the well known actor acting in a familiar role rather seeing a new face. The mask is therefore the best and simplest means of giving an illusion of permancency to a favourite character! This meant that the actor had to "play the mask" as it deprived
  
  him of facial expression
• The mask (unlike Chinese/Japanese masks) didn't express any emotion, they had an indefinable expression, full of possibilities like the Mona Lisa.
• The feeling each mask conveys varies according to the angle from which it is seen: it can range from teh most comic effects to disturbing/tragic. The body in a way is supplement to the mask.
• Nonnus of Panopolis "gestures that speak a language, hands that have a mouth, fingers that have voices."
• The masks were made of bark, or leather lined with cloth, light wood. The mask was proportioned to the size of the amphitheatre.
• Strips of brass attached to the masks were widened and exaggerated/ the lips of the masks were exaggerated to form a megaphone. 
• The masks all look kinda terrifying but they were so crudely fashioned to not make them look bland at a distance. 
  
  
  
  

THE TECHNIQUE OF THE IMPROVISATORS

• The success of the Commedia depends on the acting rather than on the scenarios. The actors had to practice a kind of self abnegation and refrain from indulging his own conceit or overplaying his role to the detriment of the others.
• Gheraldi "Italian comedians learn nothing by heart, they need to but glance at the subject of a play a moment or tw before going on stage. A good italian actor is a ma man of infinite resources; a man that plays more from imagination than from memory: he matches his words and actions so perfectly with those of his colleagues on stage that  he enters instantly into whatever acting and movements are required of him."
• Riccoboni:"Impromptu comedy: the result is that the same scenario may be treated in various ways and seem to be a different play each time!" (the only problem with this is that your act depends on your partner in dialogue)
• The actors penetrate to the very core of their subjects always prepared to imprvise with the right quips; their acting gives a far different effect of naturalness and truth.
• Gozzi "[the Italian actor's] his memory like all impromptu actors of his time was stored with phrases, concetti, declarations of love,  reproaches, deliriums and despairs."
• An actor never took any liberties in altering his role, and yet was free to infuse into it all the life and colour of which he is capable.
• Traditional characters (e.g. harlequin, Pulcinella, Brighella) can be traced across the centuries as if they were living beings whose personalities
  
  evolved naturally through a number of reincarnations (a bit like doctor Who!!). Actors would not dominate their role but submerge himself within it that he became an integral part of the character he portrayed.

IT IS TO BE HOPED THAT THESE MERRY AND FANTASTICAL PEOPLE WILL ONE DAY REAWAKEN MORE LIVELY AND ALIVE THAN EVER!

The Humours of Harlequin - Claude Gillort (1673)

• The Lazzi= means turn/trick/Italian business. The actor would resort to it if a scene began to drag. E.g. Harlequin would pretend to throw cherry stones at Scapin's face, or a catch a fly and eat it. They would bulge their faces with air/water for comic effect. And they were all acrobats (walk on hands, do somersaults etc) 
• Disguises are also very important in the plays e.g. Harlequin dressing up as a nurse, a judge when he is the thief, or a young courtesan, with always hillerious outcomes.

THE ORIGINS

• NB. Actors of the Italian Comedy were also acrobats (for example tight rope, dancers etc)
• The origins of the I.C. started 8th century BC in Greece: Icaria Comedy and from the Atellanae (Etruscan originated theatre) 
• Later on the Church was against the theatre because it invoked paganism and led women in the theatre. 
• It grew into two branches: Commedia sostenuta (played by academicians) & the commedia dell'arte. 

• the chief traits which identify Italian Comedy:
• Pulcinella: is always dressed in white (like Maccus the Mimus Albus= white Mime) 
• 
  The Captain: duplicate of Plautus' Miles Glorious
• Pedrolino: analogy with Plautus+Terence's slave 
• Harlequin+Brighella: (Bergamo) Called Zanni because they were descendants of the sannio of the Atellanae.
•  
•  The actors wore head-bands and fake scalps (e.g. Scaramuccia and Pantalone) called the Phallus which gave the effect of shaved heads
• The valets in Italian comedy wore short garments,while long robes and capes were for actors playing nobles and old men. 
• The Tabaro= was worn by all, it was a short cape in the classics style
• The Shap/Stick/Bat= was the favourite weapon of Punch, Harlequin and Scapin.

FUN History overview- The italian Comedy

• The Italian Comedy belongs to the ROMANTIC PERIOD and to the 'distant glamour of pageantry and colour'. George Sand called it the "uninterrupted tradition of fantastic humour, in essence quite serious".  Maurice Sand said it was "perfection among plays".
• you could say the Italian Comedy came from the Atellanae, ancient Greek comedies/satires in which whatever plot, every particular role was played by a particular character.
• Harlequin Punch, Columbine and Pantaloon are all examples of Characters that were used again and again in many forms and guises (often in VULGAR PERFORMANCES and FARCES). "They were quaint characters, conventionalised but full of life, rare personalities given to antics as picturesque as the costumes they wore". 

an example of this would be Angelo Beolco's comedy, which he developed in prose, with each character performing in their own, different dialect!!! (dialect was used instead of the audience's language till around early1670s)

each character possessed striking traits which stamped them with DISTINCT PERSONALITIES of their own:

•  manner of speaking and gesturing

•  their own peculiar intonations and dress/costume

 These characters represented people of the living and growing towns e.g. Bergamo and Venice. Actors and public cooperated to great extent in perfecting and standardising the different characters. Each town created a representative type which was its boast and to which their jealous neighbours added a touch of caricature to.                      

16th Century Characters from the Commedia Dell'Arte   

Milan:                     Beltrame and Scapin         

 Naples:  Pulcinella , Scaramouche and Tartiglia

Rome: Meo-Patacca, Marco-Pepe, Cassandrino 

                                                                                           T      u                 Turin: Gianduja 
                                                                                         
                 Calabria: Coviello                                                                        C    a             


All the characters wore MASKS. However women would only wear a little black velvet loup, which was also an indication of a connection with the theatre of antiquity, to protect their beauty).

• The important writers/directors of the 1700 (moment in time in which the Italian Comedy is becoming really fashionable in Paris) were Sacchi, Carlo Gozzi and Goldoni.
• "The Italian Comedy: is immense vitality, due to the genius and mastery of improvisators of their art, rarely equalled in the history of theatre!  This is because of:

1. Strong point of gesture
2. They could represent many things through their actions (they're face were masked so all their emotions were captured by their gestures).
3.  fresh element of sparkle, exuberance and salient expression. (Lke ROBERTO BENIGNI!!!!)
4. absurd/delightfully style in costumes introduced an abundance of colour and atmosphere.
5. inculated a taste for music and elaborated costumes. this was an aid to fantasy and encouraged a cult of the voluptuous.
6. the characters portray a jovial but crude naturalism.  e.g. Harlequin in the "Empereur dans la Lune"; or Scaraouche. 

 "Mad" Harlequin                            as

 

 

 

Roberto Benigni and other thoughts

it is important to have an overview of what the Italian Comedy actually entails. After my first tutorial with Paula I came to the realisation that I have picked a very particular subject, which not everyone will necessarily understand/have much in common with. The cartoon character that I am going to focus on would specifically be used in italian cartoons/films... just because I feel italian people would appreciate the result more. A full understanding of the culture and characters at hand is necessary to appreciate all the historical background research that I am going to put into these famous characters. Not to mention the very "italian" sense of humour, that I am trying to portray with my project; the same kind of comedy that the comedian Roberto Benigni is well known for:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkxHZ8gQZXQ 
(this is a link to Benigni's hilarious commentary to Dante's 'Divina Commedia'. He is explaining Dante's world renowned work of literature in a fun and accessible way, for everyone envolved. This is the kind of thing that I would be wanting to achieve with my character, and the kind of audience that I'm addressing.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCa6NPk8Oe0
(This is a clip to just show what a funny and particular man Benigni is. Not only am I using his comedy as reference, but I'm thinking of using him as an actual reference for the characters e.g. Harlequin. He is just the essence of italian comedy, and what it is all about)



Finally, I have I have in fact bought a few books to some general/historical research on the Italian Comedy and my characters.

TIME TO DO SOME READING AND STUFF I GUESS!!!