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"Commedia Dell’ Arte" On Theatre Buttons
Who’s That Girl? (or Guy?)

"All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players." -- William Shakespeare.

More than 500 years ago, roving bands of performers would travel the European countryside telling the same stories over and over. The tales they told were passed down from generations before them. Occasionally, certain political or social situations prompted the performers to ridicule the upper classes, much to the delight of their audiences, nearly all of whom were common folk. It soon became necessary for the performers to wear masks to conceal their identities from more powerful figures. No one was safe, but the more controversial the subject, the more popular they became. They went from town to town, acting out the stories, and rounding out their performances with songs and circus-tricks. Animals were often part of the acts -- dogs, cats, and bears were commonly seen.

The colorful shows were extremely popular, and the largely illiterate audiences came to expect and even looked forward to seeing familiar characters and their behaviors. These characters became "stock" types. No matter where a play was being performed, or who was playing the part, each particular character always wore a mask typical of his "type", and behaved according to his "type". The story lines too became "stock", as the group of familiar characters evolved. Soon, specially trained troupes of actors took up the roles and gave them names. In Italy, where Commedia dell’ Arte was most popular during the 16th and 17th Centuries, the stock characters were known as: Arlecchino, Brighella, Columbine, il Capitano, Pulchinella, Pantalone, il Dottore, Scaramouche, and Pedrolino. In France, some of the characters were carried over into French pantomime, and became: Harlequin, Pierrette, Punchinello, Pantalon, and Pierrot.

The storylines were based on pre-arranged synopses -- simple plot outlines -- upon which the actors "improvised" using set pieces of action known as "lazzi". The term "lazzi", literally means "trick" or "turn". Each character was known for a certain "lazzo", ("schtick") and it was these familiar bits of stage business that audiences really looked forward to. Arlecchino (Harlequin) was the prankster. In his diamond-patched costume, he got away with numerous practical jokes -- often at the expense of old Pantalone. It is from him that we get "slap-stick" comedy, made popular by Charlie Chaplin in the 1920s.

Columbine (Pierrette) was the beautiful young servant girl unhappily married (sometimes) to Pantalone. As the popularity of Commedia dell’ Arte increased, the character of old Pantalone evolved to become her father. He was always trying to marry her off to the highest bidder, but she often had affairs with the male lovers -- Scaramouche, and Pedrolino.

Punchinello (later evolved to "Punch" in "Punch and Judy" puppet shows) was the hunchback who enjoyed hitting the other characters, such as Arlecchino. Physical "lazzi" was the most popular form of stage business. It included forms of comic violence, sadistic behavior, sexual situations, and social class rebellion. (Much of it would be shocking by today’s standards!)

Pantalone was the wealthy old merchant who was sometimes married to Columbine, and sometimes just wanted to be. By the mid 17th Century this character was almost always portrayed as Columbine’s greedy father. The most horrible pranks were played upon him, always in an effort to get him away from Columbine so that the "male lover" character could be alone with her.

Il Dottore, the Doctor, was a character that was interchangeable with the Lawyer, depending upon the story. He was always played as an old, clumsy type character. The most familiar bit of "lazzi" involving il Dottore and Pantalone is where il Dottore must give poor old Pantalone an enema. While people today would be grossly disgusted to see such a thing depicted upon a stage, to 17th Century audiences this was the very height of comedy! This scene is shown on a pair of French gentleman’s cuff studs, and is highly sought after by collectors today. Who was the original owner of such buttons, we wonder? A successful actor, most likely!

Scaramouche was a scheming character, who could be charming one minute and quite mean the next. He is most often found serenading Columbine under the crescent moon, or sneaking out in the moonlight to find her. On buttons, Scaramouche is almost always depicted with the crescent moon. He is generally depicted wearing the hat, collar, and flared pants typical of the Scaramouche costume. He is called "Scaramouche" because of the lute he plays.

"Scaramouche" is the long accepted title of this button.

Pedrolino, or Pierrot, is the clown figure most often seen on 19th Century buttons. He is kind and gentle, and adores Columbine (Pierrette). She does not always return his love, however, so audiences often felt sorry for poor, Pedrolino. As time went on, and audiences became more sophisticated, plot lines became more complicated and Pedrolino becomes the figure who pines for Columbine from afar, and endures a lot of emotional abuses. In French pantomime, however, Pierrot and Pierrette are often portrayed as lovers.

Pierrot & Pierrette, the most common of all the Commedia dell' Arte buttons, (if not of all the picture buttons in general).

In 1892, long after the popularity of Commedia dell’ Arte had dwindled, Italian composer Ruggiero Leoncavallo wrote the opera "I Pagliacci". It’s theme was based upon a troupe of Commedia dell’ Arte players, who ironically appear to be actually living the "stock" storyline. This classic "play within a play" is intended to shock the audience, and effectively does so -- even today! The central figure, "Canio", (portraying Pedrolino), cannot stand it when he learns of his wife’s infidelity. In front of the shocked audience, (who at first cannot tell the play from reality) he kills his wife, Nedda -- who is portraying Columbine. He then utters one of the most ironic lines ever written: "the comedy is ended". Even though Leoncavallo’s opera was widely criticized when it first premiered, it became a very popular opera, and a great many beautiful buttons depicting "stock" Commedia dell’ Arte characters were created as a result. In addition to these, there were opera buttons created depicting Canio, dressed as Pedrolino. (It’s easy to see how we could get confused as to which is which!) These buttons, as well as many circus buttons featuring animals and acrobats can also be traced back to Commedia dell’ Arte.

It’s important to remember that each button has a history. There is a story behind every picture that appears on every button. By understanding the stories, we are able to preserve and protect the history of each button. By learning the stories, we become even more fascinated with our buttons -- and thereby hangs a tale!

Who’s That Girl? (or Guy?)... by Cecile T. Kohrs

Several buttons are fairly common, and their names are bandied about by a lot of collectors, but just exactly who are the real people these buttons get their names from? Here are just three of these buttons.

Lady Sarah Lennox of Holland House.

This silvered brass button gets its name from a painting by Sir Joshua Reynolds, a famous painter of the 18th Century. Sarah, the seventh child of the Duke of Richmond, was considered a particular beauty, and for a time, she captured the eye of His Royal Highness, King George III. George felt he was snubbed by her, and his mother wanted George to marry a cousin from her side of the family, back in one of the German principalities. So he married Charlotte, who bore him about a dozen children.

Her first marriage was apparently a poor fit, and when she became pregnant, she ran off with the man who became her second husband, Hon. George Napier (family of Baron Napier of Merchiston) on 27th August 1781. He died in 1804, she in 1826 leaving 5 children, Charles, George, William, Richard and Henry.

George III, an avid button maker, went a bit mad after losing the colonies, and occasionally talked and behaved as though he had married not the toothy Charlotte, but pretty Sarah. Holland House is the ancestral home of the Richmond family.

Blondel, the traveling minstrel. Stamped, tinted brass.

Blondel was attached to the court of King Richard (the Lion Heart) and traveled with Richard to the Holy Land on a crusade. There, the nature of the relationship between Blondel and King Richard is hotly debated, with a split between those who believe they were very good friends, and those who believe they were even closer.

At any rate, while on their travels, Blondel and King Richard wrote a song together, and they agreed they would never sing this song except with each other.

En route from Jerusalem back to England, the King was shipwrecked, and attempted to make his way back to England. Unfortunately, he had made enemies with many of the Frankish (Germanic) princes due to his high-handedness, and was captured and held for ransom in Germany. But King Richard’s brother, John, was loathe to see Richard back in England. He was a greedy man, unwilling to follow the set rules of primogeniture, and he wanted to rule as King. So, he took his time raising the money to send to Germany, and claimed he couldn’t find out where King Richard was held captive.

Angered by the way his liege Lord was being treated, Blondel went to Germany, his lute in hand. He went from castle to castle, singing for his supper after befriending the kitchen staffs. Of course, the song he sang was the one only King Richard knew, and when he heard a voice in a distant room singing along, he knew he’d found his friend. After that, it was a short time before King Richard was returned to his throne.

Axel von Fersen

Comte Hans Axel von Fersen was an attractive young nobleman from Sweden who left the Swedish Court to find adventure. He fought on behalf of the Americans against the British in the American Revolution, distinguishing himself at the Battle of Yorktown.

Later, he went to Paris, where he met the beautiful Marie Antoinette, Queen of France. Marie had already had a few children, but there is little doubt that she and her husband, King Louis XVI, led separate lives. Marie became enamored of the Count (Comte), and when the French Revolution began, it was he who endeavored to save the beautiful woman and her family. Unfortunately, in his first attempt, he decided it would be rude to just hustle the family off to safety, and he had a lavish carriage built to carry the family off. They were conspicuous, and were, naturally, caught and sent back to Paris under guard.

Still, the nobleman persisted in his efforts to save Marie, though as we know, he was unsuccessful; she was killed. He is frequently found on buttons.