Vivetta:
I know you know me, even if you can’t seem to figure out my given name – just call me The Funny Girl. Of course I would have been one of the zaniest zanne in the 16th century in Florence, had not women been banned from commedia erudita by the Church and thusly from the bands of dell ‘arte players by custom. Perhaps I was there flitting by in the blink of an eye as some unnamed female zanne. (probably played by a young male player in training) Too bad circumstance never allowed the Funny Girl to shine in dell ‘arte’s earliest times. If I had been given a chance, my signature costume would have been a hodgepodge of bright colors, attempting to mimic high fashion, but somehow always falling far short of the couture of the day. I know I would have been as highly popular as Arlecchino and my cousin, Columbine. No matter.
Regardless if my face is missing from all of the commedia dell’arte known tradition, I am one of the essentials in comedy. Who would Papageno be without Papagena? Just your average fat boy tootling a Magic Flute, that’s who.
Monthly Archives: April 2005
Oh Those Names
Some of our invitations are without names. We must find them immediately.
Abra – female form of Abraham; mother of many nations; Abrianna
Alcina -Greek: Feminine of Alcinous, a mythical character that helped Odysseus return home. Alcina is also the name of a mistress of alluring enchantments and sensual pleasures in the Orlando poems
Allegra -Latin, English: Joyous – (Alegra, Alegria, Allegria; Familiar forms: Allie)
Alessia – Greek: Defender of mankind; feminine form of Alexander – (Alexandra;Familiar forms: Aleka, Alex, Alexia, Alexis, Alix, Drina, Lexann, Lexi, Lexie, Lexina, Lexine, Sandra, Sandrine, Sasha, Shura, Xandra, Zandra, Zondra)
Antonia – Latin, Italian: Praiseworthy; feminine form of Anthony – (Italian) Antonella, Antonietta; Familiar forms: Nella, Toinette, Toini, Toni, Tony, Tonya)
Aria – Italian, Greek, English: Melody, generally referring to an elaborately done and beautiful song sung by a soloist in an opera; possible familiar form of Greek name Ariadne; (Teutonic) eagle, eagle’s wisdom; see Ara – (English) Ariette; Arietta
Beatrice – Latin, Italian: Bringer of joy
aha – here is one that just might do:
Caprice – Italian: Fanciful, whimsical; derived from the Italian word capriccio
or
Vivian – Latin, English: Full of life, lively; In Arthurian legend, Vivian was the Lady of the Lake and enchantress of Merlin.
( (Italian) Viviana; Familiar forms: Bibi, Vavay; or Vivetta
and how about her:
Marcella – Latin: Warring; feminine form of Marcellus, a name believed to have its root in Mars, the name of the mythological Roman god of war; also related to the name Mark
mmmmm …
Cyrilla – Greek, Latin: Lordly; feminine form of Cyril {
(Italian) Ciri; (Spanish) Ceri, Ceria; Cyrillia}
Clara – Latin, English, German: Clear, bright, from the Latin word clarus. See also Claire
(Latin) Clarine; (Greek) Clarrisa; (Italian) Chiara, Clariee; (Spanish) Clarisa, Clarita; Clarissa
well here they are:
Columbine – Italian: Dove; also a beautiful plant known for its unusually shaped flower and its medicinal properties
Isabel – Spanish: Devoted to God; (Italian) Isabella
well well now ..
Constance – Latin: Constancy, steadfastness
(Italian) Constantia, Constantina, Constanza
as compared with
Honora – Latin: Honor; feminine form of Honorius (Spanish) Honoratas; Honorata, Honoria, Honorina, Honorine, Honour, Onora
Donna – Italian, Latin: Lady, a respectful title and female equivalent of Don (Italian) Donella; Donetta; Donatella
Eleanor – Greek: Shining light; variant of Helen
(French) Eleonore; (Italian) Eleanora, Elenora, Elenore;
Lucy – Latin: Light; a vernacular form of Lucia, the feminine form of Lucius (Italian) Lucia, Lucianna, Lucilla
Faustine – Latin: Fortunate one; feminine form of Faust
(Italian) Fausta or Faustina
Frances – Latin: From France, free one; feminine form of Francis
(Italian) Francesca
Florence – Latin, English: Blooming, flourishing; Florence is often thought of in reference to a beautiful city in Italy that is considered a cultural art center. (Italian) Florentina, Florenza
Wilhelmina – German: Resolute protector; feminine variant of Wilhelm (Italian) Guillelmina, Gulielma
Lysandra – Greek: Liberator; feminine form of Lysander, and sometimes used as a variant of Alexandra
Lisandra, Lisanne, Lissandra
Nicole – Greek, French: Victorious; feminine form of Nicholas
(Italian) Colletta, Nicola
Oriana – Latin, Italian: Golden
Theodora – Greek: Gift of God; feminine form of Theodore
(Italian) Teodora; Theodosia
Valerie – Latin, French: Strong; derived from ancient Roman family name Valerius (Italian) Valeria; Balara, Balera, Balere, Valari, Valeraine, Valere, Valora
and
Valentina – Latin, Italian: Brave, strong; feminine form of Valentinus
Such a Long Journey
Columbine
I wonder what new experiences await me here. I wonder who will be here. I was promised I would meet some of my long lost sisters in drama. Who could that be?
At Last – The Stage Door is Open
I have to get the green room ready asap. We have been in rehearsals forever in temporary spaces. Awful places – conditions not conducive to good work at all.
Here they are all coming already and no one has even swept up or made coffee.