Commedia dell'arte
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Commedia dell'arte was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian c
Eduardo De Filippo as Pulcinella, a character from the commedia dell'arte
Commedia dell'arte troupe I Gelosi performing, by Hieronymus Francken I, c. 1590
Claude Gillot (1673–1722), Four Commedia dell'Arte Figures: Three Gentlemen and Pierrot, c. 1715
Pulcinella, drawn by Maurice Sand
Pierrot
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Pierrot is a stock character of pantomime and commedia dell'arte whose origins date back to the late 17th-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne. The
Commedia dell'arte
…group, while younger than their male counterparts, are nevertheless older than the amorosi. Some of the better known commedia dell'arte characters are Pierrot and Pierrette, Pantalone, Gianduja, il Dottore, Brighella, il Capitano, Colombina, the innamorati, Pedrolino, Pulcinella, Arlecchino, Sandrone, Scaramuccia…
Paul Legrand as Pierrot, c. 1855. Photograph by Nadar.
Antoine Watteau: Italian Actors, c. 1719. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Antoine Watteau: Gilles (or Pierrot) and Four Other Characters of the Commedia dell'Arte, c. 1718. Musée du Louvre, Paris.
Nicolas Lancret: Actors of the Comédie-Italienne, between 1716 and 1736. Musée du Louvre, Paris.