The Italian Renaissance

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The Italian Renaissance
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Features Of The Renaissance

• Renaissance Rebirth
• Late 1500s
• Rediscovery of old cultures, namely, Ancient
  Greek and Roman.
• Secularization of society, a move away form
  religion.
• Sense of exploration and Discovery

• Italy
• Perspective Painted Backdrops
• Neoclassical Ideals
• Commedia Dellarte

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Prospective Painted Backdrops

• Perspective is a convention for representing
  depth on a flat surface, that is, for
  approximating the way of a scene looks to the
  human eye.
• Proscenium Arch Arch or frame surrounding the
  stage opening, like a picture frame

• Sebastian Serlio Italian architect, painter, and
  designer who introduced perspective.
• Three basic settings
• Tragic setting showing a street of stately
  houses
• A Comic setting showing a common street scene
• A pastoral setting trees, hills, and cottages.

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Perspective Backdrops
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Backdrops Cont..

• Hung on series of angled wings - flats hinged in
  a fixed position and painted in perceptive -
  placed on behind another on both sides of the
  stage.
• The stage was raked inclined or slanted
  slightly from front to back so the bottoms of
  the wings slanted upward to enhance illusion of
  depth.

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Neoclassical Ideals

• Definition The rules formulated by Italian
  critics that were derived from their examination
  of the Greeks and Romans
• Decorm all dramatic characters should behave in
  a ways based on their age, profession, gender,
  rank, etc.
• Verisimilitude all drama was to be true to
  life.
• If you did not see it in everyday life (ghosts
  and supernatural events) it was forbidden.
• Genre type
• Tragedy
• Royalty
• Resolved catastrophically (very badly)
• Comedy
• Common People
• Happy ending
• The two never mixed
• All drama had to teach a moral lesson.

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Neoclassic Ideals Cont.

• The Three Unities
• Unify of Time
• Action in a play should not exceed 24 hours
• Unify of Place
• The play must take place in one locale.
• Unify of Action
• One central story, involving a relatively small
  goup of characters. (no sub plots)

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Commedia DellArte

• Commedia dellarte a farcical theatre that
  mirrors back to the comedy of ancient Greece and
  Rome
• Traveling troupes
• Improvised presentations
• Stock Characters
• Pantalone miserly old man
• Dottore foolish academic busy body
• Capitano cowardly braggart soldier
• Arlecchino or Harlequin comic servant (most
  famous)
• Brighella servant, mischievous and
  sophisticated, cowardly, money hungry
• The Young Lovers
• Innamorato Male
• Innamorata Female

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Commedia DellArte Cont

• Costumes
• Always wore same type of costume
• Harlequins patchwork jacket
• Dottores academic robes
• Masks except the young lovers
• Physical Humor
• Lassi (Lassa) repeated bits of physical comic
  business
• Slapstick a double sided stick that clapped when
  struck.

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Characterization

• characterization how an actor uses body, voice,
  and thought to develop and portray a character.

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Scoring Guide

• truth to the situation 5 pts
• correct and consistent character
  development.. 5 pts
• use of one lassa .. 5 pts
• and audience participation .. 5 pts