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1545
Architettura published by Sebastiano Serlio
"In 1545, Sebastiano Serlio published Architettura, in which he showed how to create a performance space within an existing room. He included drawings showing his version of Vitruvius's tragic, comic, and pastoral settings." (Brockett. pg. 117) Sebastiano Serlio was able to create distance space on two-dimensional surface. His perspective was later put to use in the 16th century on stage. -
1550
Commedia dell' Arte
Commedia dell' Arte is short for commedia dell'arte all'improvviso which translates to comedy of the craft of improvisation. Although no one knows for certain when or how Commedia dell' Arte came into being. It was first mentioned in historical records in the 1550's. What makes Commedia dell' Arte stand out from all the other theatrical activities in Renaissance Italy, it was professional and open to the public. -
1559
Queen Elizabeth 1 outlaws religious and political plays
In 1558 Queen Elizabeth 1 took over the throne. The following year, 1559, she made performing any political and religious plays illegal. She passed this law because she didn't want any religious argument between the Protestants and the Catholics. Since Queen Elizabeth 1 had done this, there was a huge increase of nonreligious plays performed and produced in the Elizabethan era. -
Opera Takes on a New Form!
During the 1590's, Opera was created to recreate the relationship between speech and music. "Opera soon became a popular form, combining drama, music, dance, spectacle, and special effects. Opera became the primary medium for popularizing scenery and the picture-frame stage, both of which had developed in the rarefied atmosphere of the Italian courts, where performances were not open to the general public." (Brockett. pg. 118-119). -
1600-1601 William Shakespeare Writes Hamlet
Hamlet is one of the world's greatest tragedies. It is among the thirty-eight plays of William Shakespeare that is still being performed to this day. William Shakespeare's Hamlet is considered to be his greatest work. Hamlet is Shakespeare's longest play with a total of 29,551 words being spoken throughout the performance. -
Teatro Farnese is Built
The Teatro Farnese, which was built by Giovanni Battista Aliotti, is the oldest surviving theatre with a permanent proscenium arch. It was built in 1618 in Parma, Italy. The theatre has a picture frame stage which is the most common used stage in theatre to this day. With the theatre set up this way, it allows the performers to give a more elegant exit and entrance onto the stage. -
Opera Becomes Public
"In 1637, a public opera house in Venice made the pleasures of the court theatres available to the general Italian public. It was so successful that soon there were four public opera houses in Venice." (Brockett. pg. 119). The world's very first public opera house was at Venice's San Cassiano theatre. The first opera public performance was “L'Andromeda” by Francesco Manelli. -
Tartuffe
Tartuffe, also known as, "The Imposter", is a comedy play by Molière. The play Tartuffe has become the symbol of religious hypocrisy. Since its first performance, the play has been banned twice because of its perceived anti-Catholicism. And because of its challenge towards religion, it makes the play harder to reproduce in today's society. The play is about a man who almost loses his home and family, because of his blind devotion to a fraud. -
The Servant of Two Masters
The Servant of Two Masters is a comedy play written by Carlo Goldoni by request from actor Antonio Sacco. "The plot of The Servant of Two Masters relies on disguise, coincidence, misunderstanding, and withheld information." (Brockett. pg. 124). This play is about a servant who is hungry. He realizes that if he worked for two masters, then he would get twice the food. In order for that to happen, he has to do a two-man job while hiding his identity from each master. -
Commedia Dell' Arte Comes to an End
Commedia dell' Arte was most popular and strong between 1575 and 1650. Commedia was most popular in Venice. Two playwrights, Carlo Goldoni and Carlo Gozzi, wanted to save it, but ended up causing the death of it. "Its death may have been due to overfamiliarity after 200 years or because its rather broad, often coarse, farcical humor had lost its appeal in the more refined atmosphere of the eighteenth century." (Brockett. pg. 123).