Francesco Andreini (c. 1548 – 1624) was an Italian actor mainly of commedia dell'arte plays. He began his career playing the role of the unsophisticated love-stricken young man. Later, he played the role of Capitan Spavento (lit. 'Captain Fright'), a Pickwickian character of excessive fatigue. He died on January 1, 1624, in Mantua, Italy at the age of 76.
Francesco Andreini was the leader of the Gelosi commedia dell'arte troupe, and had he not brought this type of theatre elsewhere, it would not have made it further to the mainstream media and developed into multilingualism and oral and textual transmissions. His role as Capitano made its way into modern media with adapted versions solely based on the original Capitano. Francesco had an impact on today's theatre and improvisation.
