The Venetian origins of the Commedia dell'arte / Peter Jordan.

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Introduction -- The "Comedy of the Profession" -- Laughter, Humour and Comedy -- Magnifico and Zanni -- Why Venice? -- The Compagnie della Calza -- Rich Boys and Poor Clowns -- Case Study, Part One: Pantalone -- Case Study, Part Two: The Capricco -- The First Professionals, The Gelos -- A Lingering Legacy -- Conclusion.

"The Venetian Origins of the Commedia dell'Arte is a striking new enquiry into the late-Renaissance stirrings of professional secular comedy in Venice, and their connection to the development of what came to be known as the Commedia dell'Arte. The book contends that through a symbiotic collaboration between patrician amateurs and plebeian professionals, innovative forms of comedy developed in the Venice region, fusing 'high' and 'low' culture in a provocative mix that had a truly mass appeal. Rich with anecdotes, images, and literary - often ribald - comic passages, Peter Jordan's central argument has important implications for the study of Venetian art, popular theatre and European cultural history"--