"Una dilettevole scuola de' buoni costumi e una soave cattedra di lezioni morali". La transizione culturale nella tragedia

This essay traces the educational, ecclesiastical and aristocratic settings of Milan in which eighteen-century tragedy was produced. They can be considered experimental workshops where forms and themes are renewed, and where the idea of theatre based on morals, culture, ethical and civic roles, and aristocratic enjoyment is shaped. The essay explores also the theatre scholars’ contribution to the well-known lively debate of the times on the theory of the “perfect genre”. Three trends are considered: biblical tragedy, political tragedy with a Greek and Roman theme, and tragedy based on the history of Italy. Three emblematic examples of the said trends are then analysed. The adopter approach is that of historical and archive research, and dramatic text analysis. The essay outlines an aspect to date less well-known, and proposes hypotheses and questions on the relationship not only between the genre of tragedy performed in eighteenth-century Milan and the cultural tradition, but also with the religious, political, anthropological and aesthetic issues made urgent by the times.