Tag Archives: theatre education

The Street as Venue

Vulgar Comedy has its roots as street theatre, or at least outdoor theatre. Long before the Greeks began building theatres for their dithyrambs and plays there where Thespis and his cart. One can still trace much of business onstage to … Read the rest of this entry

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Uniti (the Cohesive) and Fedeli (the Devoted)

Uniti 1578 – 1640 The first time we hear of the Uniti (who are also called “His Excellence the Duke of Mantua’s troupe) is in 1578 when they play in Ferrara.1583 they have either some kind of collaboration with Confidenti … Read the rest of this entry

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Confidenti (The Confident) 1574 – 1639

The first time we hear about Confidenti is from 1574, during a tour in Cremona, Pavia and Milan. That part of northern Italy was their primary tour territory.Between 1570 and 1580 they were more or less tied to the Duke … Read the rest of this entry

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Gelosi (the Zealous Ones) 1568 – 1604

Gelosi was the most famous of the Commedia dell’Arte companies of the time, the superstars of their time. They had a crest, a Janus head, and a motto: Virtù, fama ed honor ne fèr gelosi (Virtue, fame and honor made … Read the rest of this entry

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The famous Commedia dell’Arte companies and their time.

During the heydays of Commedia dell’Arte, from the fifteen sixties to the middle of the seventeenth century, there was some real famous companies. Many of them were established as soon as around 1570 in larger parts of Europe. Many of … Read the rest of this entry

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Commedia dell’Arte and text

Hearing about how the great Commedia dell’Arte groups trained and prepared their masks, we also hear a lot about how much they read (See example). It doesn’t necessarily mean that they used the texts on stage. It can just as … Read the rest of this entry

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Commedia dell’Arte – mocking the power

Also the great famous Commedia dell’Arte group mocked the power, by the dethroning of the old man and by pointing to the static preservation of the society as a representative of the stagnant. We can thank Henry III of France … Read the rest of this entry

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Commedia Erudita – Music and performance spaces (Part 4)

Commedia Erudita, just as Commedia dell’Arte, was very musical genre. It has also contributed to the birth of opera as an art form, with composers as Orazio Vecchi and Adriano Banchieri and even Alessandro Striggio and Giovanni Croce. As early … Read the rest of this entry

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Commedia Erudita  – The academies and other groups  (Part 2)

During the renaissance the first literary academies were born. They were – and still is – arranged in democratic order. When women were parts of the academies they were equal members. Isabella Andreini was a member of Accademia degli Intenti … Read the rest of this entry

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Commedia Erudita (part 1)

As we know the word renaissance comes from French (and the historian and author Jules Michelets in 1855) and means rebirth, referring to principles from ancient Greece and Rome. That goes for the theatre as well, as an important part … Read the rest of this entry

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