ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Commedia dell'arte

Commedia dell'arte is like a very old type of theater, where the actors wear special costumes and masks and use funny movements and jokes to tell stories. It was popular a long time ago in Italy, and it's still kind of famous today as a way for actors to practice their skills.

So imagine you're watching a play, but instead of regular actors wearing regular clothes, you see people in fancy costumes and weird masks. They might be playing characters like a funny guy or a silly old man or a clever servant, and they'll use funny movements and jokes to make you laugh.

One thing that's special about commedia dell'arte is that a lot of the stories and characters were made up by the actors themselves. They'd have a basic plot or idea, but they'd have to improvise a lot of the dialogue and action on the spot. That means they had to be really good at coming up with jokes and funny things to do.

Even though commedia dell'arte is from a long time ago, some of the characters and ideas are still used today in movies and TV shows. For example, have you ever seen a show or movie where there's a funny, clown-like character who's always doing silly things and getting into trouble? That's kind of like a commedia dell'arte character!