Commedia dell'arte meaning "Comedy of Art" or improvised drama was started long ago in the country of Italy about six hundred years ago. This type of drama began becoming popular in the sixteenth century. The main idea was that the subject was chosen, the characters formed and named, their affairs determined, and the outcome of each scene. One book quoted

"The actors had to find the proper words to make the tears flow or the laughter ring; they had to catch the sallies of their fellow-actors on the wing, and return them with prompt repartee. The dialogue must go like a merry game of ball or spirited sword-play, with ease and without pause."

Like most comedies the commedia dell' arte was mostly about love, money, children stolen by Turks, and sinister maids. For instance a hero was mistaken for a villain, a father and a son fall in...