Commedia dell’arte, the improvisational comic theater featuring beloved characters like Harlequin and Columbine, originated in Italy in the 1500s. It takes its name from the Italian for “skilled comedy,” because it was performed by professional troupes, in contrast to the learned and scripted commedia eru-dita, performed by amateurs in learned academies.
Commedia dell’arte performances were based on a scenario, or outline, of the plot, which was placed backstage for the actors to consult. Few scenarios remain, however, because they were only blueprints for the performance, though Flaminio Scala, an actor with the Duke of Mantua’s troupe, published a collection in 1611.
The characters, each of whom had a distinctive mask or costume, included the foolish father Pan-talone; the pedantic Dottore (Doctor) Graziano; the thwarted young lovers Isabella and Lelio; the bragging but cowardly soldier Captain Spavento; the comical servants, both crafty (Brighella) and dimwitted (Arlecchino or Harlequin); and the saucy servant girl Columbine. The actors filled out the scenario with their own improvised lines and lazzi, or physical gags, which often developed into long comic routines, and they had to be quick-witted to adapt to what their fellow actors were doing.
The origins of commedia dell’arte may lie in the plays of Plautus and Terence, ancient Roman farces, and the comedy of medieval minstrels and jesters. The first troupes to perform commedia del-l’arte formed around 1550 and found patronage at the courts of Venice and Mantua. They soon began performing at royal courts in Germany, England, and France.
Commedia dell’arte greatly influenced French playwrights. moliere and marivaux, for example, based many of the characters and plots in their comedies on Italian originals, and shakespeare refers to the popularity of the Italian theater in England in As You Like It.
Although commedia dell’arte declined after the middle of the 18th century, its spirit lives on in many classics of world literature and even in modern comedic performances, such as those by Charlie Chaplin and the Marx Brothers.
Works of Commedia dell’Arte
Scala, Flamminio. Scenarios of the Commedia dell’arte: Flamminio Scala’s Teatro delle favole rappre-sentive. Translated by Henry F. Salerno. New York: New York University Press, 1967.
Jonson, Ben. Valpone. Edited by Robert Watson. New York: W.W. Norton, 2003.
Works about Commedia dell’Arte
Heck, Thomas F. Commedia Dell’ Arte: A Guide to the Primary and Secondary Literature. Lincoln, Neb.: iUniverse, 2000. Richards, Kenneth, and Laura Richards. The Comme-dia dell’Arte: A Documentary History. Cambridge, Mass.: Blackwell for the Shakespeare Head Press, 1990.
