In the

performing arts The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perfo ...

, a scenario (, ; ; ) is a synoptical collage of an event or series of actions and events. In the ''

commedia dell'arte (; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charact ...

'', it was an outline of entrances, exits, and action describing the plot of a play, and was literally pinned to the back of the scenery. It is also known as ''

canovaccio A canovaccio is a scenario used by ''commedia dell'arte'' players. It consisted only of a list of acts and scenes; the details were left to the improvisation of the actors. Actors in the ''commedia dell'arte'' thus had to be endowed with an inventi ...

'' or "that which is pinned to the canvas" of which the scenery was constructed. Surviving scenarios from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

contain little other than character names, brief descriptions of action, and references to specific lazzi with no further explanation. It is believed that a scenario formed the basis for a fully improvisational performance, though it is also likely that they were simple reminders of the plot for those members of the cast who were literate. Modern commedia troupes most often make use of a script with varying degrees of additional improvisation. In the creation of an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form ...

, a scenario is often developed initially to indicate how the original source, if any, is to be adapted and to summarize the aspects of character, staging, plot, etc. that can be expanded later in a fully developed

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major li ...

, or script. This sketch can be helpful in "pitching" the idea to a prospective producer, director or

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Def ...

. In the

filmmaking Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, cast ...

of the early 20th century, film scenarios (also called "treatments" or "synopses"Steven Maras. ''Screenwriting: History, Theory and Practice.'' Wallflower Press, 2009. p. 92. ) were short written scripts to provide narrative coherence that had previously been improvised.Andrew Kenneth Gay
"History of scripting and the screenplay"
at Screenplayology: An Online Center for Screenplay Studies. Retrieved 15 December 2021. They could consist of a simple list of scene headings or scene headings with a detailed explication of the action in each scene. At this time in the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

, scripts had yet to include individual shots or dialogue. These scenario scripts evolved into lengthier continuity scripts, which listed a number of shots within each scene, thus providing continuity to streamline the filmmaking process.

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Cinematic techniques {{theatre-stub