EARLY MODERN tragicomedy was an international genre, originally emanating from the particular alchemy of theory and practice that distinguished sixteenth-century Italian humanist drama, and in large part sustained by the professional companies whose zenith in Italy closely corresponded to Shakespeare's lifetime. An international, Italian, perspective on tragicomedy, which this essay aims to provide, can cast the dramaturgy, motifs, character system, and emotional registers of English tragicomedy in a new light, especially in regard to Shakespeare, who among English early modern playwrights has the most affinity with Italian dramatists if we consider genre systems and theatrical structures, as opposed to merely individual plays. A continental perspective italicises the peculiar historical use of pastoral in Renaissance tragicomedy and the important role of the commedia dell'arte in transporting tragicomedy, as well as comedy, across geo-linguistic frontiers. It is the contention of this essay that the commedia dell'arte was just as important as were famous Italian dramatists such as Guarini and Tasso in conveying ‘pastoral tragicomedy’ to Shakespeare. Whereas no line of linear influence can be directly identified, this essay argues for the likelihood of a general, systemic transmission based on two factors: (1) the fact that Shakespeare was aware of the commedia dell'arte and (2) the striking similarity (with regard to dramaturgy, generic configuration, and theatrical systems) of a group of commedia pastoral tragicomedies with several of Shakespeare's works.

Like other English dramatists of the period, Shakespeare was familiar with the commedia dell'arte. Frequent uses of arte roles in early comedies and Jacques’ iteration of several commedia maschere in his ‘Seven Ages of Man’ speech (As You Like It) demonstrate that he was cognisant of the most important form of professional theatre in continental Europe.