SCAPIN Any age. Any gender. Any race. A rogue. An unwilling servant in the House of GÉRONTA. The character is playful and deceitful but ultimately good. They work to bring the lovers together through scheming, trickery, and double-dealing. An expert in lies and chicanery, the character’s name derives from scappare, to flee, which in England has created the slang scarper to mean run away, usually, from wrongdoing.

Comedia dell’arte character: Zanni.

Needs verbal dexterity/playfulness with language, physical comedy, charm, and a streak of mischief.

ARGANTA Age: 40-60. Female. Any race. Mother of OCTAVE and ZERBINETTE. She has plans for her son’s best interests and is planning a wedding for him, unaware that he has already secretly wed. Ultimately, she will be hoodwinked by Scapin to change her mind and support Octave’s choice.

Comedia dell’arte character: Pantalone

She has style, but money can’t buy taste. She believes in the rules and is a dominant matriarch who is easily outwitted by Scapin.

OCTAVE Age: 20-30. Male. Any race. Son to ARGANTA, in love with HYACINTHE. The master of bad timing. He has just secretly married Hyacinth, only to find out his mother has ‘special’ marriage plans for him. He is not the bravest sort, suppressed and compressed by his mother; his leap into marrying the poor Hyacinthe without considering her lineage is the most courageous thing he has ever done. Nevertheless, he is sure love will find a way.

Comedia dell’arte character: Harlequin

Is earnest and in love with the idea of love. A romantic who is in deep trouble. Facility with language, physical comedy, and comic timing.

ZERBINETTE Age: 20-30. Female. Any race. Daughter of ARGANTA, lead singer with the GYPSIES, the hardest rocking band south of Milan. A rebel with a cause. In a quest to express herself and live above the norms and expectations her mother has of her sex, she has run away and formed a band with whom she lives an alternative life of, if not sex and drugs and rock and roll, at least a lot more fun than the life she was born into and is expected of her. She has verve, energy, and a spirit for adventure. Believes strongly in a woman’s right to choose. She chose Léandre. He fell for her for what she is, not what she means financially or in status terms. Strong-willed, fearless, facility with language, and ideally can sing and perhaps play guitar (or bass).

GÉRONTA Age: 40-60. Female. Any race. Mother of LÉANDRE and HYACINTHE. She has also been away traveling and found the perfect wife for her wayward and proliferate son. Her servant, Scapin, uses their guile to bring all the lovers together, but Géronta will make them pay.

Comedia dell’arte character: Pantalone / Captain

Is very wealthy and super-stylish. But wealth and wit seldom travel together. Has an Anna Wintour vibe about her. Uber-chic,but got wealth the hard way and runs her empire with a stick when the air-kisses fail. Short of temper, mean, and dangerous.

LÉANDRE Age: 20-30. Male. Any race. Son of GÉRONTA, in love with ZERBINETTE. Hot-tempered and passionate. He is an unpredictable type driven by passion and a lack of forethought. He responds to the feeling and loves Zerbinette for her energy. Also, she appears to live outside of the stifling circles of his life, offering him a space to be and live a better life. He is torn between familial duty and the desire to escape.

Comedia dell’arte character: Mezzotino

Scapin is his servant, although Scapin serves the whole house.

HYACINTHE Age: 20-30. Female. Any race. Daughter of GÉRONTA, in love with OCTAVE. She is suppressed by her overbearing and judgmental mother. She has secretly married Octave and is trapped into following Scapin’s plan to formally bring them publicly together. She is an innocent, also seduced by the idea of romantic love. But she is also a fighter; she knows what she wants and will risk it all to get it. She learned that from her mother.

Romantic and slightly whimsical, facility with language and ideally can sing and perhaps play guitar (or bass).

SYLVESTRE Age: 25-40. Male. Any race. A fool. Willing servant of OCTAVE. Is a little bit dangerous.

Comedia dell’arte character: Brighella

NÉRINE Age: 25-40. Female. Any race. Wet Nurse and confidante of HYACINTHA.

Comedia dell’arte character: Ruffina

Appears in the A3 S7 and, ideally, is the drummer in the band.