Commedia dell'Arte workshop

Welcome to MASKS IN MOTION!

Take a fascinating journey into the origins of comedy. Explore the stock characters' exaggerated physicality, the masks and the improvised scenarios. It’s a great work-out, so dress comfortably!

Commedia is a non-naturalistic theatre form developed in Italy in the 1500s with classical archetypes -some masked and some unmasked- who use exaggerated gestures and movements to easily telegraph their nature and psychological motivations to audiences. 

The workshop is led by Pazzi Lazzi Troupe artistic director Chiara Durazzini and it consists of two 3-hour sessions on Saturday, October 1st and Sunday, October 2nd, 2022, from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the AiR Space at the Armory in Somerville MA. Students are expected to attend both sessions. 

We will start with a physical warm-up and go through body isolations. We will explore the physicality of nine archetypical Commedia characters (Arlecchino, Pantalone, Colombina, Dottore etc.) and demonstrate how each physical characteristic helps convey a psychological and personality trait. We will then approach the use of masks, and we will conclude the course with improvising on simple scenarios.

Open to All, no previous experience required. 

We ask to show proof of vaccination (card or photo) and that each participant will take a Covid home test the same morning before coming to class. Please, do not come to class if test is positive or if you don't feel well. Grazie!

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