This article is about the English theatrical genre. For the 1900 ballet, see Les Millions d'Arlequin. For the 1930 ballet, see Harlequinade (1930 ballet). For the 1948 play, see Harlequinade (Rattigan).
An 1890 bookcover showing the harlequinade characters
Harlequinade is an English comic theatrical genre, defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "that part of a pantomime in which the harlequin and clown play the principal parts". It developed in England between the 17th and mid-19th centuries. It was originally a slapstick adaptation or variant of the commedia dell'arte, which originated in Italy and reached its apogee there in the 16th and 17th centuries. The story of the Harlequinade revolves around a comic incident in the lives of its five main characters: Harlequin, who loves Columbine; Columbine's greedy and foolish father Pantaloon (evolved from the character Pantalone), who tries to separate the lovers in league with the mischievous Clown; and the servant, Pierrot, usually involving chaotic chase scenes with a bumbling policeman.
Originally a mime (silent) act with music and stylised dance, the harlequinade later employed some dialogue, but it remained primarily a visual spectacle. Early in its development, it achieved great popularity as the comic closing part of a longer evening of entertainment, following a more serious presentation with operatic and balletic elements. An often elaborate magical transformation scene, presided over by a fairy, connected the unrelated stories, changing the first part of the pantomime, and its characters, into the harlequinade. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, the harlequinade became the larger part of the entertainment, and the transformation scene was presented with increasingly spectacular stage effects. The harlequinade lost popularity towards the end of the 19th century and disappeared altogether in the 1930s, although Christmas pantomimes continue to be presented in Britain without the harlequinade.
Harlequinade is an English comic theatrical genre, defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "that part of a pantomime in which the harlequin and clown...
important part of the pantomime, until the late 19th century, was the harlequinade. Outside of the British Isles, the word "pantomime" is often understood...
stage in the derived genre of the Harlequinade, developed in the early 18th century by John Rich. As the Harlequinade portion of the English dramatic genre...
Röpke Lapok by Richard Geiger featuring Pierrot and Columbine Pierrot Harlequinade Caterina Biancolelli Sand, Maurice (1862). Masques et bouffons comédie...
make-up design). In the early 1800s, he expanded the role of Clown in the harlequinade that formed part of British pantomimes, notably at the Theatre Royal...
include Nikiya in La Bayadère, Kitri in Don Quixote and Columbine in Harlequinade. Boylston won the Princess Grace Award in 2009 and was nominated for...
dell'Arte. Routledge. p. 62. Sand, Maurice (1915). The History of the Harlequinade. Benjamin Blom, Inc. p. 31. Oreglia, Giacomo (1961). The Commedia dell'Arte...
joined the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company, appearing in productions of Harlequinade and The Winter's Tale at the Garrick Theatre. In 2016, he played Lysander...
c. 1540 woodcut of a jester, by Heinrich Vogtherr the Younger Medium Entertainer Types Court and theatre Descendant arts Harlequinade, comedian, clown...
Tale, Harlequinade and The Painkiller. Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company also includes Judi Dench (The Winter's Tale), Zoë Wanamaker (Harlequinade/All On...
German film 1917 Hungarian film 1945 film 1976 TV special 2009 film Harlequinade W Juliet "Nothing Broken but My Heart" Panic Button Bare: A Pop Opera...
Among the ballets performed there was the premiere of Marius Petipa's Harlequinade, in 1900. The Bolsheviks closed the theatre and utilised the building...
The Grim Goblin; or, Harlequin Octopus, the Devil Fish, and the Fairies of the Flowery Dell was a burlesque pantomime first performed at the Royal Grecian...
(1999) and graphic novel (2001) based on the old Commedia dell'arte and Harlequinade pantomime. Both the short story and the graphic novel were written by...
German film 1917 Hungarian film 1945 film 1976 TV special 2009 film Harlequinade W Juliet "Nothing Broken but My Heart" Panic Button Bare: A Pop Opera...
Pantaloon or Pantaloons may also refer to: Pantaloon, a character in the Harlequinade Pantaloons, a style of trousers originally modelled after the Pantaloon...
Medora in Le Corsaire Princess Praline in Whipped Cream and Columbine in Harlequinade. Her repertoire also include roles in La Bayadère, Cinderella, Le Corsaire...
Divertimento from Le Baiser de la fée Donizetti Variations The Nutcracker Harlequinade Harlequin Jewels Rubies A Midsummer Night's Dream Raymonda Variations...
pantomimes. The black and white publications, which were also called Harlequinades or turn-up books, sold for sixpence and the hand-colored ones for one...
joined the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company in The Winter's Tale and Harlequinade which ran at the Garrick Theatre from October 2015 until January 2016...
Retrieved 17 April 2024. "West End Review: 'The Winter's Tale' and 'Harlequinade,' with Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench". Variety. Retrieved 17 April 2024...
ISBN 978-0-275-53740-1. Darius, Adam (2007). Arabesques Through Time. Helsinki: Harlequinade Books. ISBN 951-98232-4-7 Gordon, Suzanne (1984). Off Balance: The Real...
1900–03 Les Ruses d'Amour or The Trial of Damis (1900) The Seasons (1900) Harlequinade (1900) The Heart of the Marquis (1902) The Magic Mirror (1903) The Romance...
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