him at the beginning of the comedy. In a commedia drama, many zanni or lazzi routines will begin by an action delivered by Pantalone himself. Pantalone is described as being too self-absorbed to notice and interact much with the audience, but he is so oblivious that it serves the same purpose. Pantalone is also displayed either as a single man or a widower, and not withstanding his age, makes various "attempts" at the ladies inside the commedia world and is always rejected. Due to his portrayal as an older, single man, it might be claimed that Pantalone is a very one-sided representation of old age. However, he is actually a very rounded and multifaceted depiction of the suggestive natures of old age. Pantalone's inappropriate enthusiasm for the young ladies inside the commedia world is abundantly borne out in the previously mentioned Capriccii. "Of all the twenty-seven pieces, ten allude to ladies in their titles alone, either just as a lady (donna), or as spouse (mogier), house cleaner and courtesan (Massara, Padrona) whores (puttane), sweetheart (morosa), and darling (innamorata)." Sexual symbolism is very prominent as illustrated in "Della bellezza, and crudeltà d'una donna", one elderly person communicates along these lines: vorria d’amante libero farme servo, e desidero nel mar de l’appetito tegnir el timon dritto al vassello, e d’accorto vorria ficcarme in porto [I would like, as a free lover, to help myself, and I desire in the sea of appetite to keep the ship’s rudder straight, and smartly, would I like to thrust myself into port]. Stance The traditional Pantalone stance is that of a hunch-backed old man. He walks with his hips forward, allowing him to make larger strides when he walks. The hunched shape restricts his legs, which are bent and turned out at the knees. The feet have the heels together with the toes facing apart. His hands and feet move quickly, though his body is stiff, and his head is constantly moving. When he walks, his feet should be picked up more than would occur naturally. Pantalone is slow moving, and he has bouts of agility when there is high emotion, but it is followed by asthmatic breathing and panting. Pantalone is often short and skinny. A lot of Pantalone's comedy stems from the fact that his excitable actions greatly contradict the senile position that the actor takes. He often falls backwards, generally to bad news