Tuesday 18/02

Tuesday morning began with our warm up, which was essential at the beginning of each day. We then further explored the character of Zanni.

Zanni: As well as the Big Step and Three Step the Zanni also travel via a tired run.

Tired run: The tired run is used when the Zanni is tired, but can also be used when they are upset or crying. The tired run is a normal run with the legs kicking up towards the bum. The main movement of the run is in the shoulders. The arms hang down by the side and the shoulders bounce up and down resembling someone sobbing. With this movement crying or groaning sounds are made to emphasise the tiredness or sadness of the Zanni. We practised this move by travelling around the rehearsal space and then slowly coming to a stop and falling asleep.

Jumps: All characters in Commedia are larger-than-life and often jump around when speaking. When a Zanni is happy they will often jump off the floor and click their heels together and raising their arms above their heads in glee. They will also do small jumps when moving around the stage because unlike in some theatre Commedia is very active and there is always constant movement. Before jumping the Zanni must prepare to “take off” which involves the “take off” leg being lifted before the jump is taken. The video below shows these “take offs” at 3:55.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7XWymMBrcw

 An example of a take off during the evening performance of "Toby or not Tobi"

 

 

We then moved on to learning new characters.

Pedrolino: Pedrolino is a “First Zanni” and so is in charge of the other Zanni in a household. He has the same walks as all Zanni but with slight alterations. Pedrolino’s big step is much smaller and so he remains further upright creating the appearance of a longer posture. His movement is much more elegant than the other Zanni and so his free step is that much more elegant, showing his higher status to the other Zanni. His steps are much more precise and his elbows are bent and his arms kept up close to his chest and he does not wear a mask.

Proud Walk: The proud walk is a new step we learnt which is used only by Pedrolino. The head moves like a chicken pecking while his shoulders move forwards and backwards and his arms remain close to his torso. This walk could be used as a form of travel that would help distinguish him from other Zanni.

Columbina: Columbina is also a “First Zanni” and is often the personal maid to the female Lover or a servant to one of the old men. Like Pedrolino her big step is small and her free step is elegant, another difference in her footwork is that she flicks her feet out at the end of each step so to elongate her graceful limbs. Her movements are precise and fluid, her arms in particular have a fluidity lacking in the lower Zanni. She too does not wear a mask and is one of the smartest characters. Her base stance is similar to the original Zanni stance but the feet are placed much closer together, resembling a ballet dancer.

Brighella: Another Zanni, generally bossing the other Zanni around. Brighella can be seen as a bit of a “lad” and we did an exercise where we had to try and sell something to the audience as if we were like con artists. Brighella’s knees are bent when he’s in base stance, creating an appearance of sitting. As he is viewed as a “lad” we looked at a “cockney” accent and then put on a different accent and looking at the difference. The main element of Brighella is that he is a large character and so uses large arm movements and jumps about a lot when telling stories.

Brighella run: The Brighella run is quite a boyish run and solely used by Brighella. It consists of high knees and the shoulders moving up and down as if a puppet on a string. The run looks as if the arm is pulling up the leg from a piece of string.

 

Brighella's base stance

 



Arlecchino: The final of the Zanni we learnt, much like Pedrolino and Columbina he is elegant in all Zanni walks, such as the three step. He would be the second Zanni to Brighella if he were present. He can be stupid and has a crush on Columbina and so will become quite coy around her and will shuffle around on his feet. His elbows are bent and his hands are generally placed on his hips or on a belt. When Arlecchino moves his mask will be the first thing to turn and then the rest of his body will follow.  

Columbina and Arlecchino

Pantalone: Pantalone is at the top of the status ladder as he is quite wealthy, his interests are in money and sex. He is often trying to flirt with Columbina. He is an old man and so his posture is hunched with his pelvis pushed out and stomach tucked in. His elbows are tucked in to his torso and so his hands don’t move far from his chest. He cannot turn corners well and so will often fall over resembling a beetle on its back, he will often fall over in his pursuit of Columbina. His voice is rather nasally and high pitched.

Walk: Pantalone’s knees come up when he walks in a quick motion, so they snap up before he places his foot on the ground. He walks slowly to depict his old age.



 

Monday 17/02

Our first session on Monday began with a brief introduction into the history of Commedia dell’ Arte. We then completed a warm up as Commedia uses an enormous amount of movement and our muscles need warming up.

Then Graham introduced us to some of the characters.

We began by looking at the four stock characters found in Commedia:

·         The old man

·         The servant

·         The lovers

·         The captain

We also looked at the role of the master and the servant and completed an exercise in pairs where one person would take on the role of a dog and would have to listen to the commands of their owner, such as “sit” and “fetch”.

A further take on this was to change the behaviour of the dog from good to bad and then to distracted. The exercise swiftly moved us in the direction of the first character we would be exploring.

Zanni: The Zanni is a servant, bottom of the status ladder. The stance of a Zanni is to have the knees slightly bent and shoulders hunched slightly, this shows the low status of the character. This means that the voice of a Zanni would be “common” or perhaps “cockney”.  A Zanni base stance is to have one leg bent while the other is extended out ensuring the heel is on the floor, the base stance resembles a lunge. The three things Zanni likes is food, sex and sleep and can get easily distracted by any of these things.

We did an exercise where we could hear a fly buzzing around and we had to use quick head movement to try and find the fly, this quick movement is a common characteristic of Zanni.

All characters in Commedia have recognisable base stances and walks and the walk of Zanni was the first we explored.

Big Step: This consists of hunching the shoulders over as you walk and bending the knees. As one leg comes up it is bent at the knee and turned out slightly while the alternating arm swings forward, and then you repeat the same position on the other leg. The higher you lift the leg the “bigger the step is”, so if you change the walk so you only hunch over slightly and your legs are only an inch off the floor this is a “small” big step. The bigger the step is the slower the walk is, and this walk can be used if a Zanni was sneaking around or trying to be quiet. 

Big Step

 

Three Step: The three step is likely to be used if the character is in a rush. The walk consist of taking a step forward and then the other foot steps backward and then the first step foot steps forward again, it is similar to a ball change. (Example: left/forward, right/backward, left/forward and then begin step on right foot. With this walk it is important not to skip but ensure that each step is a “step” otherwise it appears as if you are galloping around the stage.

Sleep: When a Zanni sleeps they do not sit down, this is because if they were to sleep on the floor it would limit the view to the audience and so they sleep standing up. They generally place one leg across the other leg and then rest their elbow on their knee. As this position tests your balance there is a good chance you will lose your balance and this gives you the opportunity to change sleeping position emphasising how much a Zanni loves their sleep. A Zanni will sleep talk about either food or sex and will most likely wake up with one of these in mind.

Scared Run: The scared run is used when something scares a Zanni, an example we did was walking around the space and then running in the opposite direction when a dog started barking. The scared run is characterised by high knees and leaning far back when running, this run is now known as the cartoon run but originated from Commedia dell’ Arte theatre.

Captain: The captain is of a higher status than a Zanni, he would me the Master to a Zanni. The Captain’s stance is to push his chest out to show his power and importance and when he walks he leads with his chin, suggesting he is above others.

Muscle Walk: The muscle walk is almost like a strut as the shoulders are pushed back and the chest is pushed out, this emphasises the large presence of the Captain on the stage.

Mountain Walk: The mountain walk is similar to the muscle walk but could be seen as a way of showing off. This walk involved moving the leg in a circular motion when it lifts up, as the thigh lines up with the hip it is rolled around so it is then in line with the hip to the side of the body. The arms are kept by the side but the power of the Captain is still visible in the way they are placed.

Captains like to play jokes on one another and if they’re scared they will brush off the fear as if they were joking around. They wish to impress the women and show off their power and bravery but if scared they will do the scared run.

Showing off run: This run is much like the scared run but instead the torso leans forward rather than backwards and the arms move forwards and backwards. If the Captain trips over they will recover as if they meant to do it.

An exercise we did for the Captain was to form two lines facing once another and to give a brief speech introducing ourselves and trying to out-do one another with our war stories. We explored the Captain’s voice by making it quite deep and I found that I sounded slightly like Father Christmas in the tone I used when laughing.

La Signora: Is the female equivalent of the Captain, she too walks with her chest out and leads with her chin. She walks with her hips allowing her to show off her femininity. The Captain will either try to impress La Signora or run away scared as he is intimidated by such a strong female character.

The Lovers: The Lovers are high status characters but are all consumed by their infatuation for others. The lovers are very elegant and are always stood with one leg bent and one leg straight. Below their hips they are grounded and above they are light and airy, this allows lots of arm movement. The lovers are the only characters who are able to lift their heel off the ground, but it can only be for a few moments. When the lovers notice someone they move their body in stages. First they clock with their eyes, then their heads turn, then their chests and then their feet.

We did an exercise where we went around the room and would spot someone and make our way towards them and then clock someone else and then change direction.

By the end of day one we had already had the chance to work with masks and looked at the techniques of four characters.

Performance Masks

In the 16^th Century a Commedia dell' Arte theatre company was the first ever professional acting compnay established, and many playwrights, such as Shakespeare are known to have been influenced by this type of theatre.

One main element of Commedia dell’ Arte is the use of half masks and this allows the actor to both speak and sing without the hindrance of a full face mask. The element of half masks means that the actor must work in a different way to a full face mask, an example is that the voice is very important in Commedia.

The use of the half masks is helpful in identifying the stock characters within Commedia. Most of these stock characters are the figures of fun and or satire, whereas characters such as the lovers had no need for masks as the plays generally evolved around their story rather than Pedrolino or Brighella for example (both characters are masked).

The masks are made of leather and are generally either mahogany brown or black in colour. Each character is identified by specific characteristics that are easily identified by the audience, for example the Captain has a long nose, and this allows jokes to be made about the size of his “nose”.

 

When we were first shown the masks on Monday afternoon we were told of the rules that need to be followed when using them.

·    You do not turn your back on the audience.

·    Do not look down.

Both of these rules are important because the audience loses sight of the mask and in turn the illusion is gone. If you were to look down the audience would get a great view of your hairline and crown of your head and this will mean the audience will be unable to hear the dialogue as it will be spoken to the floor.

·    The mask must be put on away from the audience, in the 16^th century there were no wings or backstage area so the actors would turn away from the audience when putting on the mask. By putting on the mask away from the audience we are able to keep the illusion intact as they never see the actor but only the actors.

I found mask work challenging because you must be aware of where your face is facing at all times. My struggle was made worse by the fact that most masks were slightly too large for my face and this meant that the masks would catch on my upper lip hindering my dialogue slightly.