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Il Dottore, commedia dell’arte character.

A costume design for The Doctor.

Il Dottore or the Doctor (usually called Dottore Balanzone, Dottore Baloardo, or Dottore Graziano) is a commedia dell'arte stock character, one of the vecchio or old men whose function in a scenario is to be an obstacle to the young lovers.

The Doctor is a local angry disruptive busybody who doesn't listen to anyone else from any of the fields that he claims to know about, which is many (medicine, law, etc.). He is traditionally portrayed as having been educated either in Bologna or Padua, which since the Renaissance had two of the most prestigious universities of Italy and Europe. He is often extremely rich, generally with "old" money, though the needs of the scenario might have things otherwise. He is extremely pompous, and loves the sound of his own voice, spouting ersatz Latin and Greek. His interaction in the play is usually mostly with Pantalone, either as a friend, mentor or competitor.

He is typically depicted as an elderly man who only knows nonsense. He makes many cruel jokes about the opposite sex and believes that he knows everything about everything. He is an obese man that enjoys the bottle and eating to excess. His mask is unique in that it is the only mask in Commedia dell'arte to cover only the forehead and nose. It is sometimes black, or else flesh-toned with a red nose.

His costume is usually all or mostly black, sometimes with a white collar. He frequently wears a hat, and long, trailing robes. If the actor playing the role is not naturally fat then he is padded out to make him seem so.

• The Doctor mispronounces Pantalone's name in stupid and embarrassing ways and then asks for sexual favors from his wife or daughter.

• Seizing upon some trivial and well-known fact, The Doctor pretends that he has made the discovery, which is of the utmost importance.

• (in English language productions) The Doctor attempts to conjugate English words as if they are Latin (i.e. complaining he’s been attacked by “hoodla” instead of “hoodlums” or speaking of going “inside and exside.”)

• The Doctor speaks in non sequitur, for example: "I am starved, do I look good? The feathers on that pigeon are beautiful..."

• Another character will seek medical advise from the doctor only for him to pronounce them pregnant regardless of their gender. Or alternatively that they are dying of some incurable disease.

[edit] References

• Rudlin, John; Oliver Crick (2001). Commedia dell'arte. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-20409-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=CgMKhwelZzUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+art+of+commedia&source=gbs_similarbooks_s&cad=1#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved August 4 2009. 
• "The Italian Comedy" by Pierre Louis Duchartre

[edit] External links

• Character description of Il Dottore
• Thinkquest's page on Il Dottore

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