Pantalone also known as Pantaloon and also referred to as a veechi, meaning old menis a Commedia Dell’ Arte stock character. He was not named after St. Pantaleone. He is also known fully as Pantalone de Bisognosi, literally "of the needy” (Shane). Pantalone is the most constantand important character in the plot of commedia dell’arte.Pantalone is described as a “Venetian merchant that controls finance in the character world of Commedia,” because of his status “his orders are usually obeyed” (Ducharte 179).
Character TraitsPantalone’s actions are described more negative than positive; he is always the obstacle for the lovers. He is an arrogant and cowardly bully. Ducharte describes Pantalone’s personality “as old as mankind” and acknowledges that it was “Venice who individualized him with the stamp of her own particular color and picturesqueness” (179). Pantalone’s character is always from Venice and his wardrobe also represents his Venetian background. Pantalone’s character is always old and retired. Pantalone’s character can be rich, poor, the father of a family, and an old bachelor. The actor that portrays Pantalone should be able to play a decrepit old man who tries to pass himself off as a youth (Ducharte 181). Pantalone believes that everything can be bought and sold. He also loves money. He always wants to marry his daughter to a wealthy man. When things do not go his way he quickly slips into emotional extremes, particularly enraged petty tyranny (Shane). Pantalone is described as having a long memory and being unforgiveable. Winifred Smith describes Pantalone’s speech as “alternately macaronic Latin nonsense and Bolognese riddles or gnomic sayings of evident folk ancestry, often indecent in their double meaning” (8). Pantalone’s speech reflects his trickery behavior.
Physical Appearance and Stance
Pantalone is lean and skinny, often short in stature with straying hair. “His arms widely outspread and his cloak flies out behind him” (Nicoll 44). He is often in a formal stance or in violent action. Pantalone appears to be fragile and old but is very quick and sly.John Rudlin describes Pantalone’s back “bending the other way to the Zannis, giving him an old man’s stoop, protecting his purse and his penis and effectively restricting the motion of his legs”(93). His feet are together, toes separate; knees are bent and facing apart creating a focus on his groin. However there are early illustrations that show Pantalone with a vertical posture. Pantalone’s stance is beneficial, because it allows him to make large strides and allows him to be constantly watchful. When he is not standing, he is in energetic movement.Pantalone cannot keep his hands to himself so they, move continuously. His constant hand movement allows him to effortlessly defend himself.
The only way he can stop his hand movement is to hold them behind his back, underneath his cloak. He walks forward with his right foot bent and his left foot stretched out behind. “In crouched attitude he circles, with almost animal ferocity, around the abject figure of a servant; he displays the grace of a dancer as he leans sideways from a pointing companion or sweeps in a courtly bow towards the object of his affection”(Nicoll 44). Pantalone’s posture is also described as an upside down “U”bow-legged, and toes pointing out and upper body leaning forward. When he is talking to someone, he leans forward, when he is listening to something, or getting bad news, he lens back.
Costume
Pantalone is always in costume and wears dark colors of red, gray and black. John Rudin identifies Pantalone’s clothes as the Venetian style of the sixteenth century. His tights or stockings and jacket are red. His clothes are tight fitting. At his belt are usually his dagger or a sword and a handkerchief. “He wears a brimless Greek cap or a toque with rolled edges sometimes red or black; he always wears a zimarra or a long gown and Turkish sandals or slippers” (Ducharte 188). Several illustrations depict Pantalone in different colored costumes; John Rudlin states “he changed the color of his tights and/or cloak to black as a sign of mourning when Negroponte was captured by the Turks from the Venetians” (92). Overall his costume style has remained the same.
Signature Props
Pantalone always carried a big dagger and a purse at his belt that was suspended in front of his genitals, to suggest his phallus. Pantalone would occasionally have a cane.
Mask
Pantalone wore a dark brown mask with a protruding hooked nose, and, occasionally round spectacles. His eyebrows were also gray and bushy. The moustache was gray, thin and pointy. His beard was white and stretched from ear to ear, and came to one or two points well in advance of the chin, as if it was meeting his nose. “This was so that the tufts shook ludicrously as soon as Pantalone began to talk” (Ducharte 188). There are different variations of Pantalone’s mask, some include the beard and others do not.
Relationships
If Pantalone is married his wife is usually young. She makes fun of him because he is old. His daughters are sometimes Isabella and Rosaura or Camille and Smeraldine. His servant girls are Fiametta and Olivette or Zerbinette and Catte. His servant boys are either Grillo, Nane, Mantecha or Harlequin. Pantalone is known to be mean to his servants, narrow-mindedly proscriptive to his children, fawning to Il’ Dottore, scheming with Il’ Capitano, lecherous with Colombina and indulgent to himself (Ducharte 182). When Pantalone owes his servants or anyone money, he pretends to faint and is “declared” dead by Dottore, he does this so that he can hear what is being said about him from the people he owes money, and he wakes up like a ghost and frightens them away.
Lazzi
Prepared comic pieces that do not further the plot. “Lazzi comes from the Tuscon word lacci meaning tied, these tricks are supposed to have tied action together”(Rudlin 57). These are a few lazzi performed by Pantalone:
Chamber Pot Lazzo: while Pantalone is courting a young woman, one of his servant girls pour the contents of the chamber pot out of the window on his head (Gordon 33).
Rissing Dagger Lazzo: when hearing about the physical characteristics of a woman, Pantalone’s dagger rises between his legs (Gordon 33).
Duchartre, Pierre-Louis, and Randolph T. Weaver. "Pantaloon and His Family." The Italian Comedy : The Improvisation, Scenarios, Lives, Attributes, Portraits, and Masks of the Illustrious Characters of the Commedia Dell'arte. New York: Dover Publications, 1966. 179-96. Print.
Gordon, Mel. Lazzi: The Comic Routines of the Commedia Dell'arte. New York: Performing Arts Journal Publications, 1983. Print.
Nicoll, Allardyce. "The Four Masks." The World of Harlequin, a Critical Study of the Commedia Dell'arte. Cambridge [Eng: University, 1963. 40-55. Print.
Character TraitsPantalone’s actions are described more negative than positive; he is always the obstacle for the lovers. He is an arrogant and cowardly bully. Ducharte describes Pantalone’s personality “as old as mankind” and acknowledges that it was “Venice who individualized him with the stamp of her own particular color and picturesqueness” (179). Pantalone’s character is always from Venice and his wardrobe also represents his Venetian background. Pantalone’s character is always old and retired. Pantalone’s character can be rich, poor, the father of a family, and an old bachelor. The actor that portrays Pantalone should be able to play a decrepit old man who tries to pass himself off as a youth (Ducharte 181). Pantalone believes that everything can be bought and sold. He also loves money. He always wants to marry his daughter to a wealthy man. When things do not go his way he quickly slips into emotional extremes, particularly enraged petty tyranny (Shane). Pantalone is described as having a long memory and being unforgiveable. Winifred Smith describes Pantalone’s speech as “alternately macaronic Latin nonsense and Bolognese riddles or gnomic sayings of evident folk ancestry, often indecent in their double meaning” (8). Pantalone’s speech reflects his trickery behavior.Physical Appearance and Stance
Pantalone is lean and skinny, often short in stature with straying hair. “His arms widely outspread and his cloak flies out behind him” (Nicoll 44). He is often in a formal stance or in violent action. Pantalone appears to be fragile and old but is very quick and sly.John Rudlin describes Pantalone’s back “bending the other way to the Zannis, giving him an old man’s stoop, protecting his purse and his penis and effectively restricting the motion of his legs”(93). His feet are together, toes separate; knees are bent and facing apart creating a focus on his groin. However there are early illustrations that show Pantalone with a vertical posture. Pantalone’s stance is beneficial, because it allows him to make large strides and allows him to be constantly watchful. When he is not standing, he is in energetic movement.Pantalone cannot keep his hands to himself so they, move continuously. His constant hand movement allows him to effortlessly defend himself.
Costume
Pantalone is always in costume and wears dark colors of red, gray and black. John Rudin identifies Pantalone’s clothes as the Venetian style of the sixteenth century. His tights or stockings and jacket are red. His clothes are tight fitting. At his belt are usually his dagger or a sword and a handkerchief. “He wears a brimless Greek cap or a toque with rolled edges sometimes red or black; he always wears a zimarra or a long gown and Turkish sandals or slippers” (Ducharte 188). Several illustrations depict Pantalone in different colored costumes; John Rudlin states “he changed the color of his tights and/or cloak to black as a sign of mourning when Negroponte was captured by the Turks from the Venetians” (92). Overall his costume style has remained the same.
Signature Props
Pantalone always carried a big dagger and a purse at his belt that was suspended in front of his genitals, to suggest his phallus. Pantalone would occasionally have a cane.
Mask
Pantalone wore a dark brown mask with a protruding hooked nose, and, occasionally round spectacles. His eyebrows were also gray and bushy. The moustache was gray, thin and pointy. His beard was white and stretched from ear to ear, and came to one or two points well in advance of the chin, as if it was meeting his nose. “This was so that the tufts shook ludicrously as soon as Pantalone began to talk” (Ducharte 188). There are different variations of Pantalone’s mask, some include the beard and others do not.
Relationships
If Pantalone is married his wife is usually young. She makes fun of him because he is old. His daughters are sometimes Isabella and Rosaura or Camille and Smeraldine. His servant girls are Fiametta and Olivette or Zerbinette and Catte. His servant boys are either Grillo, Nane, Mantecha or Harlequin. Pantalone is known to be mean to his servants, narrow-mindedly proscriptive to his children, fawning to Il’ Dottore, scheming with Il’ Capitano, lecherous with Colombina and indulgent to himself (Ducharte 182). When Pantalone owes his servants or anyone money, he pretends to faint and is “declared” dead by Dottore, he does this so that he can hear what is being said about him from the people he owes money, and he wakes up like a ghost and frightens them away.
Lazzi
Prepared comic pieces that do not further the plot. “Lazzi comes from the Tuscon word lacci meaning tied, these tricks are supposed to have tied action together”(Rudlin 57). These are a few lazzi performed by Pantalone:
Chamber Pot Lazzo: while Pantalone is courting a young woman, one of his servant girls pour the contents of the chamber pot out of the window on his head (Gordon 33).
Rissing Dagger Lazzo: when hearing about the physical characteristics of a woman, Pantalone’s dagger rises between his legs (Gordon 33).
Duchartre, Pierre-Louis, and Randolph T. Weaver. "Pantaloon and His Family." The Italian Comedy : The Improvisation, Scenarios, Lives, Attributes, Portraits, and Masks of the Illustrious Characters of the Commedia Dell'arte. New York: Dover Publications, 1966. 179-96. Print.
Gordon, Mel. Lazzi: The Comic Routines of the Commedia Dell'arte. New York: Performing Arts Journal Publications, 1983. Print.
Nicoll, Allardyce. "The Four Masks." The World of Harlequin, a Critical Study of the Commedia Dell'arte. Cambridge [Eng: University, 1963. 40-55. Print.
Rudlin, John. Commedia Dell'arte: An Actor's Handbook. London: Routledge, 1994. Print.
Shane, Tim. "Commedia Stock Characters Pantalone." Commedia Stock Characters Pantalone. N.p., 1 Jan. 2002. Web. 05 Nov. 2012. <http://shane-arts.com/Commedia-Pantalone.htm>.
Smith, Winifred. The Commedia Dell'arte. New York: B. Blom, 1964. Print.