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VCE Theatre Studies (Year 11) · Unit 1 — Theatre Styles and Conventions Pre-1945 · 12m read

Elizabethan Theatre and Commedia dell’Arte

Two lively traditions of the 1500s–1600s: Shakespeare’s playhouses in England and the improvised comedy of commedia dell’arte in Italy. Both put the actor–audience relationship at the centre.

Learning objective: Describe the conventions of Elizabethan theatre and commedia dell’arte, and explain how each shaped acting, staging and audience relationships.

By the end of this lesson you can:

  • I can describe the Globe-style playhouse and Elizabethan conventions.
  • I can identify commedia stock characters, lazzi and masks.
  • I can compare their actor–audience relationships.

Both were the popular entertainment of their day. Like a packed stadium concert or a street performance, audiences were noisy, close and part of the show.

Elizabethan theatre

  • Playhouses such as the GLOBE (built 1599) had a THRUST STAGE surrounded on three sides by the audience; "groundlings" stood in the yard.
  • Performed in daylight with minimal sets — the language created place and time ("This is Illyria, lady").
  • All-male companies; boys played female roles.
  • SOLILOQUIES and ASIDES connected actors directly with the audience.
  • Rich costumes signalled status; music and sound effects (e.g. drums for battle) were used.

Commedia dell’arte

  • Italian professional comedy, flourishing from the 16th century.
  • Troupes improvised around a SCENARIO (plot outline).
  • STOCK CHARACTERS with masks and fixed traits: ARLECCHINO (Harlequin, the acrobatic servant), PANTALONE (miserly old merchant), IL DOTTORE (pompous doctor), IL CAPITANO (boastful coward), the INNAMORATI (young lovers, unmasked).
  • LAZZI — rehearsed comic routines and physical gags.
  • Exaggerated physicality and direct engagement with the audience.
  • Its influence can be seen in later comedy, from Molière to pantomime and sitcoms.

Worked example (Medium)

Compare the actor–audience relationship in Elizabethan theatre and commedia dell’arte.

  1. Similarity. Both had close, interactive relationships with lively audiences.
  2. Elizabethan. Soliloquies and asides share private thoughts on a thrust stage.
  3. Commedia. Improvisation and lazzi respond to the crowd in the moment.

Answer: Both were intimate and interactive; Elizabethan actors confided through soliloquies and asides, while commedia performers improvised and played directly off audience reactions.

Common mistakes

  • Imagining Elizabethan stages with elaborate scenery Sets were minimal; language created place. Fix: Explain how words and costume did the work.
  • Treating commedia as unrehearsed chaos Actors trained in stock characters and lazzi. Fix: Describe it as skilled, structured improvisation.

Practice questions

  1. A rehearsed comic routine in commedia dell’arte is called a:

    1. Soliloquy
    2. Lazzo (lazzi)
    3. Chorus
    4. Skene

    (1 marks)

  2. Explain how a soliloquy works on a thrust stage.

    (2 marks)

Summary

  • Elizabethan: thrust stage, daylight, minimal sets, soliloquies and asides.
  • Commedia: scenarios, stock characters, masks, lazzi, improvisation.
  • Both feature close actor–audience relationships.
  • Use precise vocabulary.

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