Stock Characters
The original stock character in Commedia Delle Arte. He is a servant character who is always poor, always hungry, always scheming to try and better his situation. This character "moves fast but thinks slow."
Who is Harlequin?
Pre-rehearsed bits or sequences of comic business that can be inserted into an improvised performance. The term comes from the Italian word meaning "to tie together."
What are lazzi?
An action or plan which is intended to deceive.
What is a ruse?
To deliberately prevent someone from inheriting something.
What is to disinherit?
Commedia stock character who is an old, rich, greedy, and often lecherous old man.
Who is Pantalone?
These were used in Commedia performance to indicate particular stock characters, a practice inherited from Greco-Roman theatrical traditions.
What are masks?
To angrily express disapproval from a position of authority to someone because of their actions.
What is to reprimand?
To trap someone or something
What is ensnare?
To urgently or desperately request something.
What is to implore?
The bragging soldier who tells outlandish stories of his bravery in battle. He is however, actually coward who will flee from the threat of actual danger.
Who is Capitano?
Commedia Delle Arte performance marked the first time in the history of theater in the West when this group of people were allowed to perform onstage
What are women?
A thing of little value, importance, or consequence.
What is a trifle?
A person who has wealth but chooses to hoard it and spend as little as humanly possible.
What is a miser?
The act of betraying someone or something.
What is treason?
The young lovers of Commedia Delle Arte. They were the only stock characters in traditional Commedia Delle Arte who were not masked.
Who are the Innamorata?
A word that describes the state of Commedia troupes in Italy during the middle ages. This word describes someone who travels from place to place and has no permanent home.
What is nomadic?
A form of comedy that was highly influenced by Commedia Delle Arte and often uses highly improbable or exaggerated situations. This type of play is usually deliberately absurd and makes extensive use of physical comedy and lazzi.
What is a farce?
To speak harmful untruths about someone or something. To defame.
What is to malign?
Extreme anger, often accompanied by a desire to seek vengeance.
What is wrath?
Scheming, manipulative servant character who can improvise his way out of any situation. This master liar is an ancestor to 'Scapino.'
Who is Brighella?
The main historical event which allowed Commedia Delle Arte to spread from Italy to the rest of Europe was the marriage of this Italian noblewoman to the King of France in 1547.
Who was Catherine de Medici?
A sudden and unaccountable change in mood or behavior. A whim.
What is a caprice?
Beautiful, finely or delicately made. Derives from a Latin word which means "carefully chosen."
What is exquisite?
To destroy or corrupt someone’s morals. To lead astray.
What is debauch?