Concetti Chiave
- The reopening of theaters in 1660 marked the emergence of a new theater style known as the Comedy of Manners, focusing on the exaggerated behaviors and morals of the Upper Classes.
- European influences on this new style included French comedies by Moliere, Italian Commedia dell’Arte, and works by the Spanish playwright Calderon de la Barca.
- Renaissance dramas were accessible to all social classes, whereas Restoration plays catered primarily to the refined tastes of the Upper Classes.
- Restoration drama lacked the Puritan values present in earlier works and introduced significant changes in stage design and lighting.
- The transition from Elizabethan theaters to new venues included the addition of roofs, elaborate sets, innovative stage lighting, and the introduction of female actors.
Reopening of theaters in 1660
In 1660 theatres were reopened after puritan closing and, it was born a new type of theatre characterized by the Comedy of Manners, so called, for its exaggerations of the manners, modes and morals of Upper Classes. Among the most important European influences of this period, there were the French comedies of Moliere, the Italian Commedia dell’Arte and the Spanish playwright Calderon de la Barca.
Differences between Renaissance and Restoration dramas
Many are the differences between Renaissance dramas and Restoration plays. First of all, the audience to whom it is reported. Shakespeare’s plays in fact, were addressed to people of all social classes and education, while, during restoration, plays were generally restricted to people of fashion and refinement from the Upper classes. Besides, there weren’t the values and austerity of the Puritanism and, numerous changes were applied in a stage design. In this way the original Elizabethan theatres disappeared for new theaters with roof, sets, sophisticated ways of stage lighting and women actors.
Domande da interrogazione
- What significant change occurred in theater after its reopening in 1660?
After theaters reopened in 1660, a new type of theater emerged known as the Comedy of Manners, which exaggerated the manners and morals of the Upper Classes, influenced by French, Italian, and Spanish theatrical traditions.
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