Giving Life to Commedia Dell’Arte

Authors

Janine Michelle Sobeck, Brigham Young University
Dr. Rodger Sorensen, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Commedia Dell'Arte, theatre tradition, Europe, Italian theatrical form

College

Fine Arts and Communications

Department

Theatre and Media Arts

Abstract

Commedia dell’arte is the Italian theatrical form that ruled supreme from the 13th – 18th centuries. Created in a time when the theatre tradition in Europe revolved around the classic, “cold” theatre, commedia is often seen as a revolt, becoming wildly popular while managing to rewrite the rules of what makes good theatre. Commedia revolved around the world of improvisation. Stock characters of scrupulous detail were created, relationships were determined, scenarios and situations were created, and the actors were left the opportunity to “heighten, vary, and embellish their parts as their genius might suggest.” This new form of theatre created a necessity for abilities that were unknown to the medieval stage.

Recommended Citation

Sobeck, Janine Michelle and Sorensen, Dr. Rodger (2013) "Giving Life to Commedia Dell’Arte," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2013: Iss. 1, Article 2344.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2013/iss1/2344