Esperienze di cronaca teatrale: il Collodi dell’Italia Musicale = Theatrical reporting experiences: Carlo Collodi onthe magazine L’Italia Musicale

The present contribution examines, from a linguistic standpoint, some of the journalistic pieces that Carlo Lorenzini published in the magazine «L’Italia Musicale» at the very beginning of his publishing career: from the publication of his first article on December 29, 1847, to the more active period between 1857 and 1858. It is first possible to define an understudied work of the complex Collodian figure, considering the author in his role of music and entertainment critic and linking his writing, particularly linguistically, to a specific area of contemporary journalism, that of theatrical reporting. An analysis of linguistic features provides a picture of the author’s language at the time mentioned above, and permits comparisons between the young journalist’s writing and that of his contemporary (in particular, Un romanzo in vapore of 1856) and later works. The investigation’s findings reveal a language that generally conforms to the verbal environment in which the author was placed (whether as a journalist or as an author engaged in the more difficult writing of volume works), but that is not without its distinctive notes. These peculiarities help to better identify the author and allow for a more precise framing of Collodi’s recognizable pen.