The Asolo Theatre Company NEWS
January 25 , 2005
Antonio Fava At The Asolo
Sarasota, Florida -- Antonio Fava, the world's foremost expert on Commedia dell' Arte will come to Sarasota in February. Fava will present four Commedia performances sponsored by the FSU/Asolo Conservatory, and an Asolo Act One! Lecture presented by the Asolo Theatre Institute (ATI). Fava's visit to the Asolo is co-sponsored by the Riverview High School International Baccalaureate program, the Community Foundation of Sarasota and Target stores. All events will take place in the Jane B. Cook Theatre in the FSUCenter for the Performing Arts in Sarasota.
Experience the joy of Commedia dell' Arte at Fava's performance.
WHAT: The Life, Death and Resurrection of Pulcinella
A Commedia performance written, directed, and performed by ANTONIO FAVA
WHEN: Friday February 11 @ 7 PM
Saturday February 12 @ 2PM
Saturday February 12 @ 8 PM
Sunday, February 13 @ 2PM
WHERE: Cook Theatre
FSU/Asolo Performing ArtsCenter
5555 N. Tamiami Trail
Sarasota
COST: Tickets are $27-$19-$12 ($8 student rush tickets)
Throughout history Commedia dell'Arte has had broad audience appeal; the influence of Commedia on world theatre is immense. When we laugh as tragicomic characters played by Robin Williams, Ben Stiller or Jim Carrey struggle with life's problems, we are watching a modern Commedia performance directly descended from Pulcinella. After four centuries of exhilarating and heartbreaking comic plots, plots whose cruelty can be light-hearted and whose stupidity has a kind of wisdom about the world as it really is, Pulcinella remains one of the most familiar and revered character in theatre.
As Charlie Chaplin and The Little Tramp showed us, tragicomedy finds humor in the tragedy of life. It is not mournful, gloomy, heavy or boring, but rather invites us to laugh at our human frailties and failings. This form of comedy does not make its jokes cheaply, it is universal and draws on the thousands pains, big and little, which we all share. The more Pulcinella suffers or gets angry or confused in trying to understand or make himself understood, the more we laugh.
The comedy of Moliere was drawn directly from Commedia Dell’Arte; the archetypal puppet characters of Punch and Judy are Commedia characters; and many of the stock characters that we see on television today are descendants of Commedia characters (for instance, the kindly doctor, the sneering villain, the sweet young thing). And we are all familiar with the Commedia masks seen at masked balls and Mardi Gras events.
Learn more about this universal art form at Fava's lecture.
THE LECTURE
What: The Nature of Comedy, a one-hour lecture by Antonio Fava the world’s foremost expert on Commedia Dell’Arte
When: Monday, February 7, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: FSU/Cook Theatre
Cost: Tickets are $10.00 each and can be purchased by calling the box office at 351-8000
The characters we see today, on stage, in film and on television, have their roots in Commedia, which began in Italy in 1537. Fava’s lecture includes a brief historical overview, an illustration of the Commedia characters and their masks, performance of several individual comic routines, and a question-answer period. Fava is to Commedia, as Perlman is to Violin. We are so fortunate to have a master artist of his caliber in our midst even if only for a short while.
Meet Fava in person at the free post-lecture “Chianti and Biscotti” reception sponsored by the Ausonian Society.
Call Carole Kleinberg at 351-9010 Ext. 3310, or Bridget Coughlin at 923-9127, if you need additional information.
The Asolo is funded in part by the Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Department of State, The Florida Arts Council, the City and County of Sarasota and the Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax through the Board of County Commissioners, the Tourist Development Council, and the Sarasota Arts Council. The Asolo Theatre Company’s Shakespeare productions are sponsored in part by Shakespeare in American Communities, a national theater initiative sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Sallie Mae Fund in cooperation with Arts Midwest. Additional funding is also received through the efforts of support groups including the Asolo Angel Association, the Asolo Theatre Guild, The Directors Emeritus and the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations.