Bamboozled! a commedia

This excellently crafted play features many of the traditional commedia dell arte characters in a lightning speed plot with more twists than a corkscrew. A faithful commedia farce with knockabout physical and verbal delights, accompanied by as many and varied sound effects devices as can be dreamed up. Simple, tourable set. Traditional commedia costumes, or pieces. CAST: 1F; 7M; 1F or M with doubling or up to 12 with roles distributed.. The opportunistic Brighella, spies old, miserly Pantalone chasing Harlequin and threatening to throttle him. Brighella quickly distracts Pantalone by thinking-up a quick plot to earn a bit of bribery income. First, he convinces Pantalone that he s killed Harlequin and collects a handsome sum to do away with the body. Meanwhile, sweet, beautiful Columbine is heartsick at the prospect of being married off to old Pantalone. Brighella convinces Harlequin to stand in for young Columbine in a fake wedding with Pantalone. This promises to produce a large dowery from Columbine s ward, presumably to be split between Brighella and Harlequin, while freeing Columbine to run off with her love, Leandro. But Pantalone is privy to this plan and concocts one to out bamboozle the two of them. The wedding occurs, and identities are well concealed. Not even the audience knows the true bamboozler until the bamboozling end. Approximate Running Time: 65 mins.