Francesco Gabrielli Explained

Francesco Gabrielli (1588–1636)^[1] was an Italian actor of the commedia dell'arte.^[2] He was particularly famous as a virtuoso musician, who was an accomplished player of a dozen musical instruments.^[3] He is sometimes credited with the creation of Scapino, a musical zanni (servant) role, which he may actually have taken from Niccolò Barbieri.^[4] Gabrielli first appears as a member of the troupe of the Accesi in 1612, is later recorded as a member of the Confidenti, and in 1624 was with the Fedeli in Paris (under the direction of Giovan Battista Andreini), before rejoining the Accesi.^[5]

In 1627 Gabrielli learned that the Duke of Mantua was seeking a company of actors and wrote a letter from Ferrara to Antonio Costantini, the Duke's assistant, offering to bring his family and fellow players to perform in Mantua. The letter reveals much concerning the difficulties of forming a balanced ensemble and the professional rivalries among actors, both within and between troupes.^[6]

Francesco Gabrielli was the son of the well known commedia dell'arte actor Giovanni Gabrielli (known as Sivello).^[7] Francesco married Spinetta Locatelli, an actress who appeared with him,^[8] and they had several children who became actors,^[5] including Giulia (seen in Paris as Diana in 1645).^[3] It is uncertain whether Girolamo Gabrielli (a famous Pantalone) and Ippolita Gabrielli (a troupe manager in 1663) were his children.^[3]

Bibliography

• Bergquist, Stephen A. (2014). "Scapino: A Portrait of Francesco Gabrielli", Music in Art: International Journal for Music Iconography, vol. 39, nos. 1–2, pp. 98–101. .
• Hartnoll, Phyllis, editor (1983). The Oxford Companion to the Theatre (fourth edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. .
• Katritzky, M. A. (2006). The Art of Commedia: A Study in the Commedia dell'Arte 1560-1620 with Special Reference to the Visual Records. Amsterdam; New York: Rodopi. .
• Lea, Kathleen Marguerite (1934; reissued 1962). Italian popular comedy: a study in the Commedia dell'Arte, 1560-1620, with special reference to the English stage, 2 volumes, paged continuously. Oxford: Clarendon Press (1934), . New York: Russell & Russell (1962), .
• Rasi, Luigi (1897–1905). I Comici Italiani: Biografia, bibliografia, iconografia, 3 volumes. Florence: Fratelli Boca. Catalog record at HathiTrust.
• Richards, Kenneth; Richards, Laura (1990). The Commedia Dell'Arte: A Documentary History. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. .
• Senelick, Laurence (1995). "Gabrielli family", p. 407 in The Cambridge Guide to the Theatre, new edition, edited by Martin Banham. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. .

Notes and References

1. Hartnoll 1985, p. 311 gives "(1588–c. 1636)"; Richards & Richards 1990, p. 58, give his exact year of death as 1636.
2. Lea 1934, p. 490; Hartnoll 1983, p. 311; Senelick 1995.
3. Senelick 1995.
4. Hartnoll 1983, pp. 54, 311.
5. Hartnoll 1983, p. 311.
6. Letter of 6 January 1627, reproduced in Rasi 1897, vol. 1, part 2 (C–K), pp. 964–965; discussed and translated into English by Richards & Richards 1990, pp. 123–126.
7. Hartnoll 1983, p. 311; Senelick 1995.
8. Katritzky 2006, pp. 244–245 and plate 294.