The Buffoons, A Ridiculous Comedy

The Buffoons, A Ridiculous Comedy

Role

Author: Margherita Costa

Editors/translators: Sara Diaz, Jessica Goethals

Files

Document Type

Book

Description/Summary

OVEME v.63. This translation makes The Buffoons, the first female-authored comedy printed in Italy, available to Anglophone readers for the first time. Published in 1641, this burlesque play depicts the mismatched sexual desires of a prince and princess. Although set in northern Africa, the comedy satirizes the Florentine court of Grand Duke Ferdinando II de’ Medici, one of Costa’s several elite patrons. By featuring the clownish antics of an unconventional cast of dwarfs, hunchbacks, and buffoons, it reflects the bizarre appetites and grotesque entertainments of the day. Ribald puns and commedia dell’arte-inspired slapstick abound, presenting the reader with a comic alternative to decorous women’s writing in early modern Italy.

ISBN

9780866985925

Publication Date

2018

Publication Information

Costa, Margherita. The Buffoons, A Ridiculous Comedy. Edited and translated by Sara E. Díaz and Jessica Goethals, ACMRS Publications, 2018.

Comments

Copyright 2018 ACMRS Publications

The Buffoons, A Ridiculous Comedy

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