Commedia

Monday
19:00-21:00
Duration: December 01 – January 12

Taught by Sofia Karakantza

Commedia dell’Arte represents the beginning of modern theater. Its basic plots actually inspired so many of the theatrical forms that followed, including elements that penetrated into Shakespeare’s work and, a few decades later, into Molière’s.
Commedia dell’Arte is capable of inventing and inspiring new works and performances, starting from the actor’s work on their body and voice, these “popular” instruments that are available to all people.
The Commedia classes are an exciting journey into its characters. These bold archetypal characters continue to have the power to excite audiences even today.

Commedia shows all the excesses of human folly and the resulting conflicts, yet suggests the possibility of democratic coexistence and harmony.
In the class, you will surely have fun, as you will develop your self-confidence, ignite your imagination, and open the wonderful field of play with which you will expand your physical and vocal expression. There will be physical and vocal warm-ups, theatrical exercises, and delving into imagination! Sofia will guide you through the rhythms, obsessions, and perspectives of each character, so you can improvise with physicality, text, or Gramelot (nonsense), and explore character interaction!

Participants will:
🍋 Learn the historical context of Commedia dell’Arte, the origin and theatrical significance of each character
🍋 Work on the movement repertoire for basic characters (movement, voice, behavior, and manners)
🍋 Train the voice of the mask using breathing, gramelot (incoherence), masks, and props
🍋 Learn the basic principles of performing with a mask, as well as how to control the actor-audience relationship
🍋 Explore relationships between characters, exploring classic lazzi (comic jokes), burle or meccanismi (comic sequences between two or more characters)
🍋 Explore a series of characters, including different zanni (e.g., Arlecchino, Brighella, Columbina, Pulcinella)
🍋 Work in small groups on a canovaccio (scenario) to apply all acquired skills and perform them to the group
🍋 Gain a complete picture of the genre and be able to improvise and compose kinesiological stories and scenarios
🍋 Learn to manage speech and its use in improvised stories

Suitable for educators, beginners, those involved in theater and art, and those who want to explore the world of comedy as originally inspired, placing it in today’s context and strengthening it with modern tools and stimuli.