Name: In Italian, the Lovers (of whom four- two would be pairs- are usually needed for a full scenario) are called innamorati.
Status: High but brought low by the hopelessness of their infatuation.
Props: Handkerchief. Posy. Fan for women.
Stance: They lack firm contact with the earth. Feet invariably in ballet positions, creating an inverted cone. Chest and heart heavy. They are full of breath, but then take little pants on top. Sometimes when situations become too much for them, they deflate totally.
Walk: They do not walk so much as teeter, due to the instability of their base. First the head leans the other way to the body sway. Then the arms have to be used, one above the other, as a couterweight.
Gestures: Often while holding a handkerchief or flower in their the leading hand. The arms never make identical shapes. Because of their vanity, they frequently look in a hand-mirror, only to become upset by any minor imperfection which is discovered. Even in extremis they are always looking to see if a ribbon or sequin is out of place. A button on the flor or a blemish in the coiffure equals disaster.
The Comedia Del'Arte Lovers
