March is coming and Carnival is just days away. Let’s find out more about the history of the masks of the Commedia dell’arte beginning from the most famous one: Harlequin.

Harlequin is a mask from Bergamo, whose personality is born from the fusion of the Zanni’s tradition – which are the masks that play the role of the servant of nobles and rich Venetian merchants – and the diabolic characters of the popular French tradition. In fact, its mask is black and at the beginning it had more emphasized and demoniac features that has softened over the centuries.

Harlequin plays the role of the second Zanni, which is the stupid, but also sly and brilliant servant, a thief and a liar because he is really poor and always hungry. In fact his famous multicolour costume, which was at the beginning white like the Pulcinella’s one, is the result of patches and patches of coloured fabrics.

The second Zanni is a dynamic, funny and unpredictable mask, but it is also really complex to play his role. The Harlequins are few and unique, every mask becomes the extension of the actor and in fact they have different name: the most important one is Antonio Sacco’s Truffaldino.

His lazzi – which are joke with free performance – are quite famous, especially the fly one, which can be performed in two different ways: like a metaphor that identifies the flies with men or in a corporeal way like Ferruccio Soleri’s Harlequin does: the actor runs after a fly because he is hungry and then communicates with the audience with gestures and shouts of joy.

During Carnival it is possible to meet a Harlequin in piazza San Marco. Enjoy the festivity and come to Centrale Restaurant for a good meal.

 

Do not forget to book a table calling the number: +39 041 2379661
We’re open from Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

 

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