Commedia Plays: Scenarios - Scripts - Lazzi

by Barry Grantham

A collection of short commedia dell’arte plays, sketches, and exercises for use in the classroom and drama workshop. Each play has a detailed introduction and is presented in both outline form and full text. Each of the pieces is suitable for performance on stage and may also be used as the basis for improvisations.

224 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2007

Reviews

[Benito · Rating 3 out of 5]

Traditional Italian Commedia (AKA Commedia dell'Arte) was all about a troupe of actors and comedians using their archetypal 'masks' (stock characters) and routines (Lazzi) stage-tested over generations to ad-lib 'scenarios' (essentially scene breakdowns). Very different to the way plays are created today. However the ancient 'lazzi' are still seen in every comedic performance by everyone from the Marx Brothers to Eddie Murphy. This book is highly valuable in that it gives (before each play) the ancient scenario. Particularly enlightening is the two-act 'The Duchess Mislaid' scenario, by far the longest in the book. First published by the performer Flaminio Scala in a collection of scenarios dated 1611 'The Duchess Mislaid' is no doubt much more ancient. Also, the fact that 67 of the Lazzi comic routines are explained individually in the second part of the book, with reference to where they are used in modern performance, is priceless. However upon reading Grantham's fully dialogue-scripted renditions of the scenarios you may, like me, decide to turn back to said scenario to create your very own version - and so the cosmic ballet continues...