Andreini family

Andreini family

Italian actors. After their marriage, Francesco Andreini (1548–1624) and Isabella Canali Andreini (1562–1604) founded the Compagnia dei Gelosi, one of the earliest and most famous of the commedia dell'arte troupes. Their son Giovambattista Andreini (1579?–1654) acted in his parents' company until c. 1601, when he formed his own troupe, the Compagnia dei Fedeli. This troupe was invited to the French court in Paris, where Giovambattista Andreini wrote the play Adamo (1613), supposedly the inspiration for English poet John Milton's Paradise Lost.