Commedia dell'arte staging and staging practices

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Commedia dell'arte began in the 16th century.[1] When it began, it was performed outside in piazzas,[2] theatres,[3][4][5] and public meeting halls and courts.[6][7]

There were several indoor stages to choose from. With the rise in popularity of commedia also came the expansion of theatre technology.[8] This new technology was not available to all commedia troupes, but when it was they often took advantage of it.[7] Communities often made ways to aid these troupes in finding places to perform, converting private homes and town halls.[6] When the troupes went to Europe, they used what theatres they could find and would also try to build new ones to continue aiding the art.[9]

Outdoor stages were utilized by dramatizing the daily lives, where merchants had to try and get the people's attention from the stage.[2][4] They often had a backdrop to show a general location.[10] Some scholars debate the immense stigma and hatred generated by these troupes.[11] This could have played a part in deterring people from performing in the street due to this stigma.[1] This stigma grew so much that actress Isabella Andreini wrote to the governor of Milan complaining about them.[4]

The earliest knowledge of commedia staging is when Ferdinand, a son of Albrecht V, Duke of Bavaria, went to Florence for a wedding.[1][7] [12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Katritzky, M.A. (2006-01-01). The art of commedia : a study in the Commedia dell'Arte 1560-1620 with special reference to the visual records. Rodopi. ISBN 9042017988. OCLC 69983670.
  2. ^ a b Johnson, Eugene (2000). "Jacopo Sansovino, Giacomo Torelli, and the Theatricality of the Piazzetta in Venice". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. 4 (4): 436–453. doi:10.2307/991620. JSTOR 991620.
  3. ^ Toughy, Thomas (2009). "Herculean Ferrara: Ercole d'Este (1471-1505) and the Invention of Ducal Capital". Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  4. ^ a b c Henke, Robert (2002). "Performance and Literature in the Commedia dell'Arte". Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.: 19–34.
  5. ^ Pallen, Thomas (1999). "Vasari on Theatre". Carbondale, US: Southern Illinois University Press.: 28–32.
  6. ^ a b Johnson, Eugene (2005). "The Architecture of Italian Theatre around the Time of William Shakespeare". Shakespeare Studies: 23–50.
  7. ^ a b c Lea, Kathleen (1962). Italian Popular Comedy. Vol. 1. New York: Russell & Russell. p. 162.
  8. ^ Chaffee, Judith; Crick, Olly (February 2017). The Routledge companion to Commedia dell'Arte. ISBN 9781138224995. OCLC 877366486.
  9. ^ Henke, Robert (2008). "Border Crossing in the Commedia dell'Arte". Transitional Exchange in Early Modern Theatre, Burlington, US: Ashgate: 27–30.
  10. ^ Ferguson, Ronnie (1999). "Venues and Staging in Ruzante's Theatre: A Practitioners Experience". The Renaissance Theartre: Texts, Performance, Design, Aldershore UK: Cambridge University Press.: 146–159.
  11. ^ Dixon, Michael Bigelow; Smith, Val (2000-01-01). 500 years of theatre history : from the Brown-Forman Classics in Context Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Smith and Kraus. OCLC 42475671.
  12. ^ Commedia dell'arte performance : context and contents. Southeastern Theatre Conference and the University of Alabama Press. 1993-01-01. OCLC 47010263.

Further reading[edit]