Who's Who in the Commedia dell'Arte Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This character of the Commedia dell'Arte is depicted wearing a mask with a large fleshy nose, and a somewhat down at heel, worn or patched military uniform. He proudly carries a sword but would much rather scream and run away than draw it to stand and fight. Who is he?

Answer: Il Capitano

Il Capitano is a coward and a braggart with an eye for the main chance, who tells tall tales of his exploits to anyone who will listen. Because he is a satire on the military, his uniform reflects the time and place of the staging of the play.
The character of "Captain" has his origins in Roman theatre, then arrived in Italy in the 15th Century as a Spaniard during the Italian Wars.
The earliest record of the formation of a professional Italian theatre group dates to Padua in 1545, when Angelo Beolco wrote rustic comedy plays, some of which featured an early 'version' of an Il Capitano character called Il Ruzzante.
The characters of Scaramouche and Cyrano de Bergerac both have their origins in Il Capitano.

2. Known as Kasperle in Austria, Hanswerle in Germany, Toneelgek in The Netherlands, and Karagoz in Turkey, this character of the Commedia dell'Arte represents the poor working man. He dresses in a baggy white shirt and trousers, with a tall hat, and wears a brown or black mask with a long hooked beak of a nose. Who is he?

Answer: Pulcinella

Pulcinella means 'chick' in Italian, and his full name is Pulcinella Cetrulo which means 'stupid chick'.
Until the end of the 17th Century, he was portrayed with a hump back, and it is in the Pulcinella character that the traditional British Mr. Punch of Punch and Judy has his origins.

3. Originally a generic character, this female servant girl was first called sobretta, servetta, or fantesca meaning 'little servant girl'. Later she was known at different times as Franceschina, Smeraldina, Oliva, Nespola, Spinetta, Ricciolina, Corallina, Diamantina, and Lisetta. Who did she eventually became known as?

Answer: Columbina

Originally, women were not allowed onto the stage proper during a theatrical performance, and a dancer with a tambourine (le canterine or le ballerine) would perform between the acts to amuse the audience.
This convention dated from as far back as Roman times, and it was in the 16th Century that the various characters who eventually evolved into Columbina, (Columbine in English) began to take a place on stage during the action.

4. This character from the Commedia dell'Arte is always fat. If the actor is thin, then padding is used to increase his girth. Dressed in black robes, sometimes with a white ruff, he often carries a book to show he is a learned man. His mask is half face, to allow his rouged red cheeks to show his fondness for alcohol, and has grey fluffy eyebrows. Who is this character?

Answer: Il Dottore

The character of the Doctor has his origins in the Mummer's Plays of medieval England, and folk plays from Europe of the same period.
His dress in the Commedia dell'Arte is based on the robes of a scholar, and he is usually portrayed as being from Padua or Bologna, as these cities had the most prestigious universities of the Renaissance period.
The white ruff at his neck first made an appearance in the mid 17th Century, and his original black skull cap became a wide brimmed hat.

5. One of the characters of the Commedia dell'Arte who is most recognisable today, wears a voluminous white suit with large 'bobbles' down the front, and a large floppy collar. He has a pointed white hat, and instead of a mask, his face is painted white, with black accents, sometimes including a teardrop on his cheek. This character has several names, which of these is NOT one of them?

Answer: Pulcinella

Original Commedia dell'Arte troupes were members of one family, and the Pedrolino role was given to the youngest son. The names are all variants of Pagliaio - literally "a pile of straw", as the youngest son would sleep with the livestock.
The earliest record of a Piero dates from the mid 16th Century, becoming Pierrotta, then Pierrot by 1675.
The classic mute, sad clown Pierrot familiar to us today dates from the early 19th Century, when he was created by Frenchman Jean-Gaspard Deburau.

6. The Innamorati are the Lovers characters in the Commedia dell'Arte. They are always young and attractive, and often well to do. The Innamorati do not wear masks, or if they do it is a simple vizard of plain black; instead they wear heavy makeup. How do the Innamorati dress?

Answer: The very latest fashion of wherever and whenever the play is being staged

A traditional scenario has two couples, often given 'paired' names such as Silvio and Silvia; they provide a plotline involving misunderstandings and 'crossed wires' before each pair are united at the finale.
The stock characters of Isabella, Flavio, Lelio, and Vittorio are all Innamorati.
The heavy makeup allows actors to continue playing the youthful characters, even once they themselves are no longer young.
Both sexes dress in the very height of fashion for the time and place, and actresses may change their dresses several times during one play.

7. This Commedia dell'Arte character is portrayed as an older man in the traditional red and black garb of a Venetian merchant. His most (ahem) 'outstanding' feature is a large phallic codpiece, alongside which he hangs his money pouch. Who is he?

Answer: Pantalone

Pantalone is the 'Father figure' or employer/monied man of the Commedia dell'Arte and is also a miser.
Sometimes known as 'Pantalone di Bisognosi', the origins of the name Pantalone are lost to history. The most commonly cited source of the name is "pianta leone" or "planting the lion", thought to be a reference to Venetian conquests where the lion flag of the City State was planted on newly claimed land.
Another possible source of Pantalone comes from the Greek writer Athenaeus who mentions a clown called Pantaleon in his 3rd Century work "Deipnosophistae".

8. The Zanni of the Commedia dell'Arte are the clowns. The name is a diminutive of Giovanni, and the characters are representative of the Bergamase peasant migrant workers of the 16th Century who "moved to the city" to look for work. Would you recognise a Zanni by his traditional costume - how are they dressed?

Answer: White baggy clothes, with a black mask

The origin of the use of Zanni as the name for these characters comes from the fact that Giovanni was the most common male name in the area around Bergamo in the 16th Century.
The Zanni are there to provide the butt of jokes and pranks, and are often treated as objects of derision; the longer the nose of the mask, the more stupid the character is meant to be.
The baggy white clothing was originally made from flour sacks.
The word Zanni can be either singular or plural, and is also the origin of the English word zany.

9. The name of one prop first used in the Commedia dell'Arte has passed into modern usage as the term for a type of comedy typified by the work of Laurel and Hardy, Buster Keaton, and The Three Stooges. Made of wood, in Italian it is called a battachio. What is this called in English?

Answer: slapstick

A battachio (literally "the clapper inside the bell" in Italian) or slapstick is made of two wooden pieces joined at one end, which 'clack' together when something is struck with it, and make a loud noise.
Although the noise is loud, it is caused by the two parts of the device hitting each other and pushing the air out from between them, rather than much force acting on the person or thing being struck. This allows much scope for "comic violence", and dates from at least the Renaissance period.

10. This character of the Commedia dell'Arte evolved from being a minor member of the zanni in the early 17th Century, to being a major romantic figure 100 years later. By the 18th Century his costume had become the familiar diamond patchwork in bright primary colours that we know today. He wears a black mask and is never seen without his battachio. Who is he?

Answer: Harlequin

The earliest illustrations of Harlequin go back to the late 16th Century, and there are many theories as to the origins of the name and character, none of which can be proven.
He and Columbine were often portrayed as lovers, particularly in the British 'Harlequinade' which evolved from the Commedia dell'Arte in the 18th Century and is the forerunner of the traditional pantomime. Today only traces of the original Harlequinade survive as the slapstick and chase scenes in various pantomimes.

Source: Author Rowena8482

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor agony before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Are you familiar with the origins and appearance of the various characters from the famous Commedia dell'Arte?

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