Stage Scene
Italian troupe revives Baroque-age sitcoms
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| The Italian troupe Teatro del Vicolo combines comedy, broad characterizations and masks this weekend with its commedia dell'arte performances of "La Flaminia Rapita" (The Kidnapping of Flaminia).
Teatro del Vicolo "La Flaminia Rapita" (The Kidnapping of Flaminia), commedia dell'arte 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday Kennedy Theatre, UH-Manoa $20; $18 seniors, UH-Manoa students, faculty and staff; $9 students 956-6878, 956-7655 |
The wacky neighbor next door, a la Cosmo Kramer in "Seinfeld." The lovable buffoon, a la Joey from "Friends." The overbearing father, a la ... well, you get the point.
We're talking about stock characters — labeled as such for the simple fact that every situation comedy should have one for that "go-to" punchline guaranteed to procure guffaws. Since the dawn of television, prime-time comedies have been literally stocked to their three-walled sets with these recognizable characters to ensure enough laughs for each week's 20-minute thread of a plot.
No surprise: Neither the stock character, nor the situation comedy itself for that matter, was unique to the era of television.
The Italian-born theater of commedia dell'arte — popularized by traveling actor troupes on outdoor stages throughout the country from the 16th to 18th centuries — existed on the same kind of stereotypic characters, broad physical comedy and instantly recognizable everyday scenarios that keep TV Land and Nick At Nite stocked with endless product in the 21st century. The art form, which also featured elaborately ornate costumes and masks, some degree of improvisation, and musical interludes, transcended social classes and influenced theater throughout Europe. Translated into English, commedia dell'arte is "comedy of the (performers') art."
One of the little-seen artform's most lauded modern practitioners is the Italian performance ensemble Teatro del Vicolo, led by longtime commedia dell'arte scholar, educator and performer Antonio Fava. The nine-member company — which in the family tradition of commedia
dell'arte includes Fava's wife, Dina Buccino, and two children — is in Honolulu this weekend for two performances of "La Flaminia Rapita" (The Kidnapping of Flaminia), a classic romantic-tragicomedy with a decidedly modern vibe.
The basic story? Flaminia and Fulgenzio are two young people on the verge of marriage when an argument between their respective fathers cancels their impending nuptials. Flaminia's — you guessed it — overbearing papa promises her hand to Capitano Scarabombardone, who has just pulled into town with his servant Arlecchino. Desperate and defiant, the lovers run away from home. Hilarity, one hopes, ensues.
The text features time-tested commedia dell'arte stock characters such as the Innamorati ("the lovers"), Il Capitano ("the captain"), Columbina ("the servant") and La Ruffiana ("the thwarting old miser"), for starters.
"I think anybody who enjoys comedy and likes humor that is somewhat improvisational and has a certain amount of slapstick to it will enjoy this," says Tim Slaughter, program specialist for University of Hawai'i-Manoa Outreach College, which is presenting Fava and Teatro del Vicolo fresh from a tour of Japan. Slaughter expects children to find their laughs in the purely clownish comedy of the production while adults latch on to "La Flaminia Rapita's" more sophisticated hidden humor. "The great thing about it is it's comedy that appeals to all ages."
Like "The Simpsons," perhaps?
"Well, yeah," says Slaughter, with a hint of reservation. "It's kind of like that."
