The St. Olaf theater department is presenting a production of “The Love of Three Oranges” at Carleton College on Saturday, November 15, at 2:00pm in the Weitz Center Theater. The play was written in 1761 by Carlo Gozzi. The play is set in a fantasy world filled with charm and comedy, certainly unique for a piece written during the Age of Enlightenment. The production combines the talent of St. Olaf art students, led by Irve Dell, with a theater cast directed by Jeanne Willcoxon. The play, like many of Gozzi’s works, is based on an old Italian fairy-tale.
In the early 18th century, traditional Italian comedy was being displaced by a new brand of comedy introduced by famous writers Pietry Chiari and Carlo Goldoni. As an attempt to reestablish old-school Italian comedy, playwright Carlo Gozzi wrote “The Love of Three Oranges”, which was intended to be a parody of Chiari and Goldoni’s styles. The piece employed comedic actors who had lost their jobs as the new dramas became more popular in Italy. Gozzi’s play helped maintain traditional humor in Italian theater. His works became so popular that Goldoni was forced to flee Venice out of embarrassment. Goethe, Schiller, and Ostrovsky all praised Gozzi as a very talented and humorous writer. Hundreds of years after his death, his plays still entertain audiences around the world.
Full list of performance times and Locations
Friday, Nov. 14, 7:30pm – Stav Hall,
Saturday, Nov. 15, 2:00pm – Weitz Center, Carleton College
Saturday, Nov. 15 7:30pm – Regents Hall Atrium
Sunday, Nov. 16, 2:00pm – Ytterboe Lounge
Thursday, Nov. 20, 7:30pm – Regents Hall Atrium
Friday, Nov. 21, 7:30pm – Tomson Hall Atrium
Saturday, Nov. 22, 2:00pm Ytterboe Lounge
Saturday, Nov. 22 7:30pm – Stav Hall