Renaissance Italy

1. Renaissance Italy Led to theatrical conventions that would eventually displace those of Shakespeare’s theatre and dominate Western theatrical practices until the 19th Century

2. In the early 16th century, plays imitating classical forms began to be written in Italian • To present such plays was considered a mark of a ruler’s cultural enlightenment • Theatrical entertainments soon became standard features of court festivals given to celebrate betrothals, weddings, births of royal children, visits of emissaries from other states, etc.

3. ScenicPractices • The Italians were trying to replicate the practices of the Romans but in doing so, created a new radical scenic practice that would dominate the European theatre into the 20th century • The principles of perspective drawing was developed in the 15thCentury

4. ScenicPractices • The principles of Perspective were so important that eventually they had been adapted to the stage • This is important because it signaled a movement away from the formal and architectural stage toward the representational and pictorial stage

5. What does that mean to be representational? • Represents a SPECIFIC place • No longer a standard façade that represented all places

6. ScenicPractices • The side wings, backdrops and overhead borders were drawn as seen from a fixed viewpoint (originally the seat of the ruler) • The floor of the stage raked upwards towards the back • Goal was to create a convincing picture

7. At first, the arch was a part of the scenery but eventually became a part of the permanent architecture of the theatre The prosc soon became a standard feature of theatres and remained so until recently; even today, the picture-frame stage is the most common type Proscenium arch-came about so as not to ruin the perspective (audience could not see around or above the setting to achieve perspective) Oldest permanent proscenium-Teatro Farnese built in 1618 in Parma, Italy

8. ScenicPractices • With a single setting, they had to come up with ways to move from one locale to another: • They used 2-D wings set up parallel to the front of the stage (one per location), one would be pulled offstage to reveal the one directly behind it • Until the 19th century, scene changes were made in full view of the audience

9. From Intermezzi to Opera • Intermezzi- “interludes” between the regular acts, were elaborate, had many special effects, music, song and dance • These intermezzi eventually evolved into the Opera form in the 1590’s • Opera soon became a popular form • By 1637 there were 4 public opera houses in Venice

10. Opera Houses: a reinforcement of class structure • Divided so that people could attend the theatre without having to intermingle with other classes • Gallery-cheapest seats for working class people • Boxes: upper class could be private • The pit

11. Commedia Dell’Arte • By 1600, commedia troupes were traveling all over Europe • Comedy of Professional Artists • They could play almost anywhere • Because the actor was most important, they would work with elaborate sets if available but could function with almost nothing • The script was a scenario. The actors improvised all the dialogue and fleshed out the action. The details differed from performance to performance

12. Commedia Dell’Arte • An actor played the same character with its standard attributes and costume • Therefore performers became very familiar with their characters • This facilitated improvisation • Performers made everything up as they went along • Lazzi-comic business • Would be indicated in the script generally as lazzi of fear or fight lazzi • For improvisation to work performers had to keep in mind where the scene was headed to make the plot work as a whole

13. Commedia Dell’Arte • Actors who played the young fashionable men and women kept notebooks where they kept track of popular poetry, literature, sayings, etc. • Stock Characters-commonly known character based on stereotypes: • Lovers • masters • servants

14. Commedia Dell’Arte • Were the most realistic Lovers • Young and handsome • Did not wear masks and dressed in the latest fashions • Each company had at least one pair of lovers, most had two • Children of the masters • Love affair was opposed by the parents and aided by the servants

15. Commedia Dell’Arte • Most common were Pantalone, Dottore and Capitano Masters- • Pantalone-elderly Venetian merchant • Capitano-a braggart and coward who boasted of his prowess in love and war only to be discredited • Dottore, usually P’s friend or rival was a lawyer or doctor who loved to show off his learning

16. Commedia Dell’Arte • Were the most varied Zanni-the servants • Most companies had 2-one clever and one stupid • Their actions kept the plots moving as they sought to help or thwart their masters • Harlequin became the most popular • He was an acrobat and dancer • The British puppet character Punch comes from Harlequin

17. Commedia Dell’Arte • Most companies were organized on the sharing plan, although younger actors and assistants may have been salaried • Most traveled frequently, although some were able to settle down • Commedia was most popular 1575-1650 • The Servant of Two Masters by Goldoni comes from the last days of Commedia, and is the closest commedia experience we have today, although it is scripted • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10JbRd-VxzQ

18. Now for the French… • Instability in the 16th and 17th centuries interrupted development of the theatre until: • 1625-Cardinal Richeliieu, Louis XIII’s prime minister, having secured absolute power for the king, set out to make France the cultural center of Europe • He advocated the adoption of the proscenium stage and perspective scenery • Also advocated that drama adhere to theoretical principles (would later be called the neoclassical ideal)

19. Neoclassical Ideals: • Genres should be tragedy and comedy and should not be mixed Neoclassicists believed that the purpose of all drama is to teach and to please • Tragedy should treat royalty and nobles; comedy should treat middle and lower classes • Characters should behave in a manner appropriate to their social status, gender and ethnicity (decorum) • All plays should be written in five acts • All plays should observe the unities of time, place and action • The wicked must be punished and the good rewarded

20. What Drama SHOULD be…upholding the status quo • Le Cid was written by Pierre Corneille in 1636 • Most popular play written in France • Play was viciously attacked because it failed to adhere to some of the neoclassical rules • Richelieu sent it to the French Academy (40 most eminent literary figures of the day) • The academy faulted its deviation from the rules • This ruling is important because it legitimized the neoclassical view • Corneille then adopted the new mode which was later perfected by Jean Racine (Phaedra)

21. Moliere • Learned most from Commedia • Moliere set the standard for Comedy • Just like Shakespeare, was involved in every aspect of his theatre: actor, playwright, manager • Wrote Tartuffe-criticized those who acted as “spiritual police” while seeking pleasures for themselves in private • Was banned by Louis XIV in 1664. New version was banned by in 1667. The archbishop of Paris threatened to excommunicate anyone who recited or performed the play in public or private • By 1669, the opposition was mostly gone

22. 17th Century French Theatre • Acting companies had a lot in common with the Elizabethan • Organized on the SharingPlan • 10-15 actors with hired assistants, stage hands, musicians and actors • Major Difference: French companies included women, who had equal rights with the men and received comparable pay • All the leading companies in Paris received a subsidy from the crown • Active rep of 50 or more plays

23. Actors • Casting was simple because each actor played a limited range of roles • By the 18th century, they were hired by their type and played those roles throughout their career • A new actor learned the role from the person they were understudying or replacing so roles came to be played in a traditional manner handed down from one generation to the next • Actors furnished their own costumes • Females dressed in the fashions of the day

24. Lighting, Sets and Seating • Stage was Lit by chandeliers, footlights and lamps • Audience was also lit which encouraged interaction • Sets were generalized. Only props used were tables, chairs and beds • Audiences could sit on the stage for an extra fee-became very fashionable

25. By the 18th Century, although there were still obvious differences among the theatres of various European countries, they shared the same basic conventions. The theatre had made the transition from festival offerings to professional, secular entertainment