Pietro Chiari

Abbot Pietro Chiari (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpjɛtro ˈkjari]; 25 December 1712 - 31 August 1785) was an Italian playwright, novelist and librettist.

Life

Chiari was born and died in Brescia. He was a Jesuit until leaving the order in 1747. From 1747 to 1762 he was court poet of Duke Francis III of Modena, in Venice, although not at the public cost. During this period he wrote nearly 60 comedies, which from 1761 or earlier often brought him into conflict with his rival Goldoni. With a deep hatred for the style of Molière, Chiari made comédie larmoyante fashionable in Italy under the name commedia fiebile. He also edited the Gazzetta Veneta from 1761 to 1762, when he returned to his birthplace to spend his final years.

Works

Comedies

Tragedies