Dottore (theater)
The Dottore (ital. "Doctor", often also Dottore Gratiano or Graziano, Balanzone, Scarpazon, Forbizone, Boloardo) is a figure of the Commedia dell'arte who comes from Bologna . Like Pantalone, he belongs to the "old people" ( vecchi) who oppose the love affairs of the younger generation (the amorosi or innamorati) and the servants ( Zanni ) .
Characteristic
The dottore studied at the University of Bologna or the University of Padua , the most prestigious universities during the Renaissance , and is characterized by know-it-all and learned gossip, interspersed with " kitchen Latin ". He mixes legal, medical, philosophical and astrological terms in a weird way.
The dottore is a lawyer or a doctor. He is usually rich and widowed or bachelor. Sometimes he is portrayed as very myopic. He wears a half mask, a black coat with a white ruff and a large hat, the costume of the academics from Bologna. His cheeks are often colored red to show off his love for wine.
Effect in the history of theater
The doctors in Molière's numerous comedies , such as The Doctor Against Will , The Love as a Doctor and The Conceited Sick (1673), are modeled on the dottore. He also played a standing role in the opera buffa of the 18th century . Dottore figures often appear disguised as doctors or lawyers, including Despina in Mozart's Così fan tutte (1790). Even in vaudeville and silent films since 1900 there are actors who make use of the traditional lazzi of the dottore, such as Oliver Hardy .
literature
- John Rudlin: Commedia dell'Arte. An Actor's Handbook. Routledge, London, New York 1994, pp. 99-101.