The ancient Commedia dell'Arte, a form of free and improvised comedy, flourished in Italy during the Renaissance period in the 16th century. It dates back to the Roman empire.

'Commedia dell'Arte was performed outdoors at temporary venues by professional actors who were costumed and masked. By the mid-1500s, specific troupes of commedia performers began to group together and by 1568, the Gelosi became a distinct company, with the logo of the two-headed Janus. The Gelosi performed in northern Italy, eschewed patronage and pursued autonomy. The Gelosi performed with a cast of 'usual ten' that included 'two vecchi (old men), four innamorati (two male and two female lovers), two zanni (servants), a captain and a servetta (serving maid),' the Italian actress said.

The genre, Benedetti said, was associated with the evolution of the 'free theatre movement in Italy and women's empowerment'.

'Commedia dell'Arte was notable in that female roles were played by women, documented as early as the 1560s. In the 1570s, English theatre critics denigrated the Commedia troupes with their female actors. Ben Johnson referred to one female performer of the Commedia as a 'tumbling whore'. By the end of the 1570s, Italian prelates attempted to ban female performers. However, women remained on Italian stage,' she said.

Conventional plots were woven around themes of adultery, jealousy, old age and love, Benedetti added.

Commedia as a genre has received 'a great deal of attention from several legendary 20th century theatre artists including Jacques Copeau, Vsevolod Meyerhold and Jacques Lecoq because they wanted to move away from naturalism', the actress said.