Enlightened.
Burning social commentary.
Universal truths.
These might not be the first words that pop into your head when you hear the word “comedy” but students in Acting II have a different take on things. For the past three weeks we have been studying comedy. Yes, this is actually a thing and it consist of more than sitting around watching your favorite Saturday Night Live sketches. It is as complex, intricate and challenging as tackling Hamlet (well, maybe not as complex, but definitely as challenging!). Comedy has rules and traditions. If you follow them you will likely end up with people describing your work as “enlightened” or containing “burning social commentary” that highlight “universal truths” while clutching their stomachs because they are laughing so hard. At least that’s what happened in our class on Wednesday.
Acting II students were charged with crafting original sketches using the foundations of commedia dell’arte as a guide. Commedia was born in Italy during the Renaissance. Its raucous, bawdy, and highly-physical comedy provided the backbone for every comedian who followed. The primary goal of commedia was to challenge the status quo and unearth universal truths about social norms. I was curious to see what social norms our students would tackle and what elements of commedia they would utilize. It would be impossible for me to summarize their work- comedy, in its essence, is of the moment- but I will give you some highlights…
- The American Melting Pot compared to rainbow sprinkles
- Politicians speaking gibberish
- A reference to the famous Red Sox player A-Rod
- A veterinarian providing childbirth advice
- Multiple references to reality television
Through these outlandish situations universal truths about American politics, major league sports, the politics of flying, and the value of family were unearthed.
Beyond creating our own sketches we looked at theatre traditions from the past and present, across the globe and in our backyards, that share connections with commedia. Kabuki Theatre, the Peking Opera, Bread and Puppet Theatre, and the San Fransisco Mime Troupe utilize physicality, stock characters and other traits of commedia in their work. At the end of class today students concluded that this kind of storytelling is universal and links us as human beings across time and space. Pretty enlightened, indeed.