Greek Comedy

1
Greek Comedy

• Origin of the word comedy comes from commos
  oides which means drunken revelry
• Comedy started as bands of singers making fun of
  others
• Developed from the satyr play which was a
  humorous story that followed a trilogy of
  tragedies in competitions such as City Dionysia
• Satyr plays were bawdy and political and would
  often offer suggestions to current and political
  problems.

2
Greek Comic Playwrights

• Most famous Greek comic playwright was
  Aristophanes
• Considered a writer of Old Comedy
• Old comedy used bawdy comic characters and lavish
  costumes to satirize current affairs
• Aristophanes most famous play
  Lysistrata Summary

3
Roman Comedy

• Original Roman comedies used stock characters,
  bawdy events and obscene language. They were
  considered primitive to Greek comedy
• When Romans were exposed to Greek culture they
  mimicked Greek comedy
• Romans used Greek characters and locations to
  get away with political and social content i.e.
  the Son and the Slave (see picture at right)

4
Roman Playwrights

• The only extant plays we have are from Plautus
  and Terrence
• Plautus wrote both old comedy and new comedy
• Most famous play The Menaechmi
• The Menaechmi was adapted by Shakespeare into The
  Comedy of Errors
• Plautus play The Pot of Gold was adapted by
  Moliere into The Miser

5
Commedia DellArte

• Commedia began in Italy in the 1500s
• Usually performed in the streets for the common
  people but it could also be performed at court as
  well
• Used improvisation that was guided by scenarios
  (outlines of a story or scene)
• Many commedia character types or stock characters
  have influenced modern characters of today.
• Highly physical form of comedy that required
  specific acting skills including acrobatics,
  dancing, and juggling.
• Characters in Commedia were referred to ask
  masks since the actors wore masks
• Characters in Commedia used lazzi - movements,
  tricks, and expressions that were unique to each
  character

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Commedia DellArte

• HIGH STATUS Characters
• Pantalone - Dottore -Capitano
• Inammorati - Young lovers who are in love with
  being in love. They are often the sons or
  daughters of a high status character like
  Pantalone or Dottore
• Often too absorbed with being in love to notice
  anything else.
• Servant characters the Zanni (this is where we
  get the modern word zany) LOW STATUS
• Arlecchino, Columbina, Pedrolino (also
  known as Pierrot), Pulchinella

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Commedia DellArte High Status

• PANTALONE- Sometimes portrayed as a mean or dumb
  old man- Sometimes a miser- Sometimes the
  father of the Inammorati- Usually concerned
  about status- Sometimes would want to marry the
  pretty young girl
• DOTTORE- A doctor that has no idea what he is
  doing- Often portrayed as out of shape or
  overweight. - If portrayed as a philosopher or
  academic doctor, he thinks hes smart but isnt
• CAPITANO- Arrogant with huge ego- Pretends to
  be brave and macho but isnt- Usually pretends
  to be a soldier simply because he owns the
  uniform- Pretends hes from another town and is
  very important

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Commedia DellArte Zanni Characters
Pedrolino (also known as Pierrot)- Quiet or
mute, appears dopey, usually feel sorry for him,
can sometimes be smarter than people think. He
wears a white simple mask and usually all white
clothes.
Pulchinella- Grumpy, makes wise cracks, often
chases pretty girls, mean to Pedrolino. Walks
with a hunch back or has large stomach. Wears a
mask with a grumpy face
Columbina- Sometimes a ladys maid. Usually
smarter than those she serves. She can be
considered a female version of Arlecchino