Herlaking

Theatre Mask and

Commedia dell’Arte Research Project

Directed by Cristina Coltelli

“THE SECRET OF COMMEDIA DELL’ARTE” Intensive workshops of Commedia dell’Arte: from the creation of the character to the birth of the Canovaccio

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INDEX

The beautiful and dangerous enterprise. Historical signs_____pag 3

I. Redesigned behavior________________________________pag 4

II. Improvisation; III. Creation and assembly of the Canovaccio______________ pag 5

Subjects and research workshops_______________________ pag 6

The Interactive Lecture________________________________pag 7

Biography and partnership of Cristina Coltelli______________pag 8

Contacts and video links_______________________________pag 9

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The Secret of Commedia dell’Arte Doc Cristina Coltelli

“The emotional charge of the masks works on the senses even before the intelligence; they are living action, not mere representation" Siro Ferrone, “Attori, mercanti, corsari” EINAUDI

On February 25, 1545 the first professional company of comedians, legally established by notarial deed, in the world was born; so this is the date that is the symbolic birth of the Commedia dell‘ Arte, which was to spread into the streets, courts and theaters throughout Europe for over 3 centuries and which was to mark the development of modern drama to the present day.The largest known playwrights, like Shakespeare, Moliere and Goldoni, took their inspirations and stole many stage tools from Commedia’s great cauldron; direct descendants of the Commedia dell‘Arte techniques are famous people like Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Toto, Dario Fo and more generally all those currents, disciplines and art forms typical of the 1900s: the variety show, clowns, Theatre of the Absurd, Physical Theatre, Italian comedy and even cartoons.

L’ Impresa Bellissima e Pericolosa… (The Beautiful and Dangerous Enterprise...)

Commedia dell’Arte is a multi-faceted world that required, of its Comedians, the assimilation of various interconnected skills: from the techniques of improvisation to the complex system of creation and assembly of the Canovaccio, from the study of the Classics to the creation of their own veritable "Inter-language" that would allow them to be understood outside of the numerous geographical, political and cultural confines that characterized Europe (especially Italy) at the time. At the end of the golden age, the reporter Andrea Perrucci wrote about Commedia dell’Arte: "It is an enterprise that is as beautiful as it is difficult and dangerous. Don't get into it unless you are cut out for it and knowledgeable" (Dell’Arte Rappresentativa Premeditata e all’Improvviso – 1699 )

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Among the arts that Comedians had to "understand" was the use of the powerful tool of language that is the half-mask, which catapults the "otherworldly" into everyday situations and requires an encoded use of the body, so as to appear natural. Each posture, gesture, “mask stroke” of the individual characters of the impromptu Comedy, are part of a precise, executive, continuously evolving score. INTRODUCTION: The old saying: either the Stanislavskij method “turned upside-down”

Anyone who has heard phrases like, "walks with head high", “Chin up!”, "Do not slouch your shoulders," knows that what is being suggested is not only the mechanical execution of any action. This is about assuming a posture that, if maintained over time, will affect one's attitude, the way one acts and reacts, and therefore also "feels".

These "good pieces of advice" that are handed down from grandparents, parents and close friends are based on the belief that if you move in a certain way you will be thinking in that way, without going through the tunnel of the intellect and its psychological branches. On the other hand, during the time of Comic Art, they did not have the faintest idea what this mysterious thing was, that in the 1900s became known as Psychology ...

I. Redesigned Behavior ...What they did know very well, was that every significant experience of life (bereavements, triumphs, joys and pains) will focus not only in the soul but also in the body and its way of getting around: too much pains, they say, the shoulders slump, the knees bend etc... on the other hand during good times... your chest puffs out, your legs straighten, eye contact improves and so on... In addition to this emotional memory, the body also has a practical one, related to repetitive movements that in some cases shape posture. These two layers must be added to the mask, built on precise archetypal lines, which oversee, promote and guide the creative process in a continuous search for balance between instinctive insight and proper execution. The workshop aims to transfer to the student the basic knowledge for the understanding and the creation of the main characters of the classic Commedia dell’Arte, up to their enactment, through the repetition of precise exercises on the one hand and the stimulation of improvisation on the other. To encode and set the character’s gestures and behavior in motion we will work on the following lines:

- Professional postures and gestures (the repetitive gestures of the trades, or “professional

deformations”) - Atavistic Postures (what the body revels regarding the basic needs: hunger, love, fear, rage,

relationships) - Use of the half Mask (guidelines and creation of the grotesque deformation)

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Because the masked character has a real life he needs to confront with other masks and especially with his audience. The staging game takes place without the aid of scripts, using only what has been learned about the character, the others involved in the improvisation, and the stimulation of the public who assist. Without going into the complexity of a real plot, the characters will be asked to improvise based on their duties as characters.

II. Intuition guided by Form: Improvisation When it comes to improvisation one often falls into a linguistic misunderstanding and therefore also of content, according to which "improvisation" means doing things spontaneously, voluntarily and in total anarchy. On the contrary, anyone who has anything to do with improvisation, at the professional level, (jazz musicians on top) knows that improvisation is an art that is refined with experience and responding to very specific rules. In other words, improvisation can not be improvised. During the vast period of time in which the Commedia dell’Arte reigned on stages in Europe, the comedians elaborated with sophisticated improvisation techniques so as to be understandable and quickly adaptable to the diverse audience of Renaissance Europe, from France to Germany, and England to Russia. Many of the techniques pioneered by those comedians remain fundamental laws of theater and contemporary playwriting, especially related to comic theater:

- Birth and development of the Tormentone (Catchphrase ) - The mathematic of laughter (the 3 beats rhythm) - The Comical delay - Creation of Lazzo - Improvisation on the subject (law, proposition and transformation) - Law of contrasts - Technique of carryovers ( colpi di maschera/mask strokes)

Of course, the art of improvisation is not limited to mere form. The simple formal execution would be pure appearance, like a nice gymnastic gesture. The creative element and dynamic of improvisation is something intangible that the involved actor must feel instinctively and transform in the moment, hic et nunc, here and now. A form of attention/reaction that can only develop through constant training. Only the perfect balance between intuition and the proper execution creates improvisation, or as I call it: The Dynamic Dramaturgy at the base of the "third level" of Commedia dell’Arte.

III. Creation and assembly of the Canovaccio Perrucci writes again in 1699: (...) Famous comedians who came to perform in Italy, could not understand how anyone could do a comedy concert with only several characters and assemble it in less than an hour." What, to foreign colleagues, seemed almost magical was actually a precise method of composition that was already known and widely accepted in much of Europe, from the beginning of the 1700. For inexperienced eyes a Canovaccio looks almost like an incomprehensible, absurd code: there are no dialogues and the few informations relate primarily to the entrances, exits and the dominant subject of the scene, so that an entire act may well be contained in one page. What is missing is precisely the "secret" of Commedia dell’Arte, namely the ability to develop the narrative subject through the dynamic dramaturgy, break it down as needed and make it repeatable and effective. Students will work on original historical Canovaccios, but will also be encouraged to create their own developing creative work, ensemble skills, not only as actors but also as writers and directors.

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Subjects:

- Introduction and historical backgound - Presentation, dramatic function, and repetition of main characters: Zanni,

Pantalone, Dottore, Innamorati, Capitano, Colombina, Tartaglia, Brighella, Madama Briganta

- Stage acrobatic - Half Masks techniques - Use of Batochio (Zanni tool) and slapstick - Dynamic Dramaturgy - Method of evolution: from simple to complex - Techinque of Tormentone - I Lazzi - il Grammelot - Creation and assembly of the Canovaccio

Intensive workshops on related topics:

Commedia Dell’Arte and the Grotesque (in collaboration with Masquerade Studio, Berlin-

Copenhagen) The Grotesque genre has always marked the boundary between the various factions of the social order. Its provocative and mocking function, its universal character of eternal rebirth and have marked and transformed social and cultural codes through a precise and merciless aesthetic. Combining

historical research with "hands on" theatrical experience, we will investigate new barriers, new exceptions, new privileges, in search of the new grotesque of today. The workshop also aims to explore the social function of laughter and comedy, such as powerful expressive and encoded forms and then finding new input for the contemporary theater.

La Tragedy of Art: the distortion of the classics Commedia dell’Arte was a source of inspiration for all the greatest writers of its contemporaries: Not only Moliere and Goldoni drew from this immense cauldron, but also the divine Shakespeare used its plots and characters, thus recognizing Commedia dell’Arte as an absolute value and a priceless tool. Through the study of some great classics, we will do the reverse path of the author; the text will be broken down in the canvas and reinterpreted from the point of view of the masks.

Contemporary Commedia Commedia dell’Arte is not just a historical phenomenon that is being played, on the contrary it is fluid, living, applicable and applied to contemporary drama. It was also a fundamental basis for all the theatrical revolution of the 1900s that led to the birth of Physical Theatre. Through the study of the modern applications of Commedia, we will work to create new characters and new Canovaccio inspired by the world around us today.

Arlecchino’s Secret According to the scholar Allardyce Niccol, Harlequin, along with Hamlet, is the world's most popular stage character. But while we know Hamlet's words and thoughts, we at most know only a few confused words of Harlequin; We recognize Hamlet whatever the appearance of his interpreter, we always recognize him for what he says; on the contrary, to recognize Harlequin we need to see his leather face and colored diamonds; we always recognize Harlequin for what he is. And despite the fact that there are very few of his performers, Harlequin will not be forgotten, he survives and is nurtured in the collective imagination, popping up from time to time. Harlequin escapes. He poses a fascinating stage problem for comedians which we will explore with a rigorous work of documentation, technique and improvisation.

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The Secret of Commedia dell’Arte: Interactive Lecture on classical and modern stage masks Conceived and performed by

CRISTINA COLTELLI and the most estimated Audience

Who were the comedians “dell’ Arte”? And how they managed to codify an universal language which is such perfect? The show “Arlecchinando” tells the fascinating story of the Italian comedians, pioneers and travelling pirates, and at the same time it reveals some of their tricks. It shows how the human body is an everlasting source of information and silent dialogue, how moving the head back or forth one can become, with no need of acting, the picky aunt or the curious neighbour . involved in a constant interaction between spectators and stage, people will be invited to follow the map of the body, until the final creation of the masked character. Commedia Dell’Arte is a form that lives in front of an audience. It must be experienced in order to be a valuable tool for actors today. The Interactive Workshop is comprised of performance, lecture and audience participation sessions to provide both a context for Commedia as well as a fresh approach to character, comedy and the art of improvisation. At the end of the lecture the audience will come back home with the following informations:

- What was Commedia dell’Arte

- How and why Commedia dell’Arte survived and its impact on modern theatre

- Why our husband, neighborough, best friend, boss, wife, always keep his/her head bended on one side….

We invite you to a trip in time, from the 16th century to today. Together, we will explore the play of this adventurous art, which has been alive for almost five centuries.

Enjoy the tradition, rejoice, re-invent, now!

Duration: from 1hour and half to 2 hours The lessons are in english or italian

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www.herlaking.it www.museomarionettepalermo.it

Cristina Coltelli, was born in Palermo. In 1997 she graduated from Scuola di Teatro di Bologna (A. Galante Garrone) at the same time she began her studies on the Commedia dell’Arte popular theater with the company Attori e Cantori of Pordenone and Ariane Mnouchkine in Paris; Also, in 1997, she debuted in the role of Harlequin in the comedy "the 99 labors of Harlequin," of which she is also the author and director. In 96 she worked alongside Andrea Jonasson, Paola Quattrini, Ugo Pagliai and Paola Gassman in the role of Francesca of Rimini in Inferno, directed by Lorenzo Salveti. She worked with the National Theatre of Parma under the guidance of Walter Le Moli

with whom she played the nursemaid in "Romeo and Juliet" and under the guidance of Gigi Dell'Aglio who directed her in "The Exterminating Angel" by Buñuel. In the summer of 2000 she joined London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Actress, author, singer and teacher, she divided herself between prose, physical theater and music. She played the role of Edith Piaf in the recital of the musical Rue Pigalle accompanied by Master F. Milani and in 2006 founded the Association HERLAKING, devoting herself to education, international trade and the production of shows with particular attention to Mask Theatre and the disclosure of the classic and experimental Commedia dell’Arte. She has taught courses and seminars on the Commedia and use of masks in Italy, Trinity College in Ireland, Laghborough, England and the Comedy School in Copenhagen, starting a permanent collaboration with the Masquerade Studio (Berlin/Copenhagen). The latest realized project is the INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP Commedia dell’Arte and the Grotesque, which was attended by as many as 8 countries from in and outside Europe. . VIDEO The latest show written, directed and interpreted by Coltelli was VECCHI E VASTASI, that blended the classic techniques of the Comedy of Art with Vastasa and the writing by Nino Martoglio. . Video primo studio - Intervista She has been a member of the association SAT, (www.incommedia.org) since 2010, which contains among its members the accredited operators of the national and international Comedy of Art. SAT has been accredited as non-governmental organization for the convention on the intangible heritage of UNESCO for its work in favor of the tradition of the Comedy of Art. Coltelli has also encouraged and trained young local students who are currently attending schools in the national theater (Academy of Rome and Genoa) and international (école des Arts - Paris) and in the fall of 2011 taught at Theatre VICARIA by the director Emma Dante.

Masquerade Studio www.teatermasker.dk

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_______________________________________________________________________________

HERLAKING LINKS

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info@herlaking.it

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Archivio Video YOUTUBE

Cristina Coltelli HERLAKING (su FB)

Ultima intervista Stampa: Cristina Coltelli su Vecchi e Vastasi

NB: The description is available in Italiana as well _______________________________________________________________________________