author
Agostino Ricchi
1512–1564
A Renaissance man in the fullest sense, he moved between medicine and the stage, earning early praise for a comedy performed during the festivities for Charles V's coronation in Bologna. His life links humanist learning, courtly culture, and the lively world of sixteenth-century Italian theater.
1 Audiobook
I tre tiranni Commedie del Cinquecento
by Agostino Ricchi
About the author
Born in Lucca on May 31, 1512, he was the son of a physician and the grandson of the humanist Giovanni Carminati on his mother's side. After early humanist studies in Lucca, he continued at the University of Bologna, where he studied arts and medicine.
As a young man, he wrote the comedy I tre tiranni, staged in Bologna on March 4, 1530, during celebrations for the coronation of Charles V. The play brought him early notice, but he did not remain mainly a man of the theater: after completing his medical training, he practiced medicine in several cities and later served at the papal court from 1552.
He died in Lucca on March 6, 1564. Though not widely known today, he stands out as one of those fascinating Renaissance figures whose career crossed literature, learning, and public life.