Mad-Hot Madrigals: Selections from the Rime (1601) of Late Sixteenth-Century Diva Isabella Andreini (1562–1604)

Mad-Hot Madrigals: Selections from the Rime (1601) of Late Sixteenth-Century Diva Isabella Andreini (1562-1604) Anne-Marie Sorrenti, University of Toronto The past decade has witnessed an increased level of interest in the life and work of Isabella Andreini, also known as Isabella da Padova, the late sixteenth-century stage actress, poet, and woman of letters. Much of the scholarship to date focuses on Andreini as an historical and cultural figure, and on her reception as the most celebrated commedia dell'arte actress of her time. There is, however, no critical annotated edition of her poetic work, the Rime di Isabella Andreini: comica gelosa (1601), available for consultation, nor does the existing scholarship explore the very strong connection that exists between her lyric poetry and her famous stage performances as the leading lady of the Gelosi theatre troupe. This paper will make the case that although the figure of the 'diva' is commonly regarded as originating in the nineteenth century, Andreini, who performed and wrote more than two centuries earlier, may claim the title of the first diva of the Italian stage and page. The article explores the relationship among 1) Andreini's public reception as a late-sixteenth century stage diva 2) her poetic self-portrayal as an alluring and elusive performer, and 3) her employment of the poetic madrigal (the most free form of lyric poetry in terms of both structure and thematic choice) to move beyond standard Petrarchan topoi such that earthly, corporal, sensual and erotic aspects of love and death are explored. Many of her madrigals indicate that the Petrarchan love object has come down to earth and has morphed into something quite different: not only is she no longer an ethereal Laura, but 'she' is sometimes a 'he.' In Andreini's love poetry, as in her stage work, both the lover and the beloved can be a man, a woman, or ambiguously gendered. The lover in her madrigals, regardless of gender, can feel hatred and madness, may have erotic fantasies, and is constantly burning with desire. This 'mad-hotness' for which Andreini became well-known in her performances (especially her celebrated Pazzia di Isabella) arguably permeates these madrigals as well. Keywords: Isabella Andreini, Diva, Early Modern Women Poets, Petrarchism, Rime di Isabella Andreini, comica gelosa (1601), Eroticism, Madrigals, Mad scenes, Pazzia di Isabella, Love and Death Short Bio: Anne-Marie Sorrenti is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Reformation Studies at Victoria University (University of Toronto). She received her BA (summa cum laude) in Humanistic Studies from McGill University, a JD (Juris Doctor) from the University of Toronto, and a PhD in Italian Studies at the University of Toronto. Her dissertation, Public and Private in the Writings of Leon Battista Alberti, examines the influence of law in the literary work of Alberti, his representations of public and private space, and public and private aspects of friendship, marriage, infidelity and dissimulation in his ouevre.