Christopher Bayes is known as one of the best interpreters of classical comedy in the world. He is currently the Head of Physical Acting at Yale School of Drama. ABOUT THIS PRODUCTION Playwright Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793) is considered the founder of the “Italian realistic comedy.” He is known for incorporating commedia dell’arte stock characters into full length plays. In 1743 Goldoni wrote The Servant of Two Masters which became his most popular play. The Servant of Two Masters has been adapted numerous times at theatres all over the world. An adaptor transposes an existing text with the freedom to put his or her personal spin on the story. Constance Congdon took Goldoni’s original The Servant of Two Masters and altered it for a modern audience while containing the spirit of the original. You may notice many pop culture references in the production, those were added primarily by the adaptor, though some may also have been created by the cast and director and written into the script. Congdon is a playwright and adaptor who is best known for her play Tales of the Lost Formicans and her adaptation of Maxim Gorky’s A Mother. -Hannah Ray Montgomery for Yale Repertory Theatre’s WILL POWER! Study Guide, 2010 Why stage Goldoni today? Do you think that we relate a lot differently to commedia today than people might have in the 1700s? “Commedia is a living form. It is not a recreation or historical re-enactment. It comes alive with the new breath of each audience. We see stock characters that we recognize and relate to in every performance. We see reflections of commedia in sitcoms, “SNL”, and “The Simpsons.” We laugh at idiotic logic and desperate attempts to cover our mistakes no matter what century they came from. The main trigger for laughter is surprise. Sometimes we are surprised by a trick. Sometimes we are surprised by the sheer audacity of the performance. Sometimes we are surprised that a bad idea leads to something remarkable. Or that something stupid can turn into something brilliant, simple, and human. I have a feeling that what surprises us also surprised people in the eighteenth century. We haven’t changed that much. Although I do think that we bathe more often. And we have the iPhone…what a surprise.” Carlo Goldoni statue, located in Campo San Bortolomìo square in Venice, sculpted by Antonio Dal Zotto in 1883. Chris Bayes, photo by Mara Lavitt. AT&T Foundation | The Sheri and Les Biller Foundation | The Chisolm Foundation Fales Foundation Trust | The Loeb Family Charitable Foundations US Bancorp Foundation A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO OUR EDUCATION SPONSORS: 2013-2014 SEASON In the commedia dell’arte style, servant Truffaldino attempts to serve two masters in the hope of double wages and double dinners. directed by Christopher Bayes adapted by Constance Congdon from a translation by Christina Sibul