click to view a YouTube production slideshow
photos © Richard K. Hogle

Barry Gaines, review, ABQ Journal Venue (4/23/10):
"The name of Niccolo Machiavelli, the 16th-century Italian renaissance philosopher and writer, is usually associated with politics. His treatise "The Prince" advocated the use of cunning and duplicity by absolute rulers to achieve their aims. At The Cell, however, the FUSION Theatre Company is presenting a Machiavellian comedy of fraud and deceit used to attain a sexual goal.

Machiavelli's play "The Mandrake" was first performed in 1518, and it is presented here in the witty 1977 adaptation by Wallace Shawn. The result is a bold and bawdy comedy with colorful characters and costumes, amusing song and dance, and a happy ending.

Because the root of the mandrake plant is often forked, resembling a human body, it has been connected with magical powers--especially the capacity to induce pregnancy--in folklore and witchcraft. The fabled power of the mandrake is at the heart of the play

Lord Nicia, an old pedantic fool ("not smart, though a scholar") is obsessively desirous of a son with his youthfully beautiful and virtuous wife Lucrezia. Wealthy and charming Callimaco is obsessively desirous of sleeping with Lucrezia. He bribes worldly but poor Ligurio and employs his servant Siro to help him to Lucrezia's bed.

Ligurio presents Callimaco to Nicia as a physician who offers a mandrake potion to overcome his wife's infertility. Sadly, the potion supposedly kills the first man to have intercourse with the potion patient. The schemers plot for Callimaco to be that (un)fortunate lover.

Sostrata, Lucrezia's mother, and Brother Timothy, her confessor, persuade her to go along with the plan. They assure her that "the ends justify the means."

Director Jacqueline Reid has assembled another excellent cast and guided them to obtain the maximum humor from their situations, costumes and lines. Scenic designer Richard K. Hogle constructed a central fountain out of four toilet bowls, connected at the center and painted to resemble marble. He should be flushed with pride at this prop.

Costumer Aura Sperling-Pierce combines renaissance silhouettes (codpieces are prominent) with contemporary fabrics and textures (plenty of vinyl and velvet). The characters' disguises are a mix of commedia dell'arte and Mardi Gras.

Paul Blott and Kate Costello are outstanding as Nica and Lucrezia. His character embraces the plan that will cuckold him while hers, wearing a white vinyl outfit, glides elegantly on plaid platform shoes. Will Peebles as Siro, and Joanne Camp as Sostrata, are audience favorites. Bruce Holmes is broadly funny as Timothy. Malcolm Madera is admirable as Callimaco--sincere in his desires but silly in his doctor disguise (complete with Inspector Clouseau accent).

Ross Kelly as Ligurio flexes comic muscles I didn't know he had. His facial expressions, body poses and Italian accent get laughs where none are intended. He is marvelous. So is the whole enterprise."

Wally Gordon, The Independent (4/21/10):
"A century before John Donne’s “Song,” Niccolo Machiavelli also wrote about the mandrake plant, which was legendary for its supposed ability to help women get pregnant. Unlike Donne’s continuingly famous poem, Machiavelli’s comedy “Mandrake,” has sunk into undeserved obscurity—undeserved because, as the Encyclopedia Britannica noted in a long essay, the work is “the ripest and most powerful play in the Italian language.”

“The plot is improbable and unpleasing,” the essay continued. “But the wit, humor, vivacity and satire of the piece bring before us the old life of Florence in a succession of brilliant scenes. If Machiavelli had any moral object when he composed the ‘Mandragola,’ it was to paint in glaring colours the corruption of Italian society.”

Now running in a production of the FUSION Theatre Company at the tiny Cell Theater in downtown Albuquerque, the play speaks to our own time in its ribaldry, broad slapstick, wild comedy and, not least, in limning the despicable depths of the human soul. When times turn bad, the mind turns to comedy: It seems to be a rule throughout the generations. When the play was first printed in 1524, Italy was as much of a mess as the United States is today, its rich but tiny city-states the playthings of popes and Holy Roman Emperors.

Machiavelli, like many of his contemporaries, did not have an elevated view of humanity. His name became synonymous with cynical political manipulation because of his advice to the young Medici ruler in his famous, or infamous, treatise, “The Prince.”

“Mandrake” is equally cynical although far more fun than “The Prince.” None of its characters, including a priest and a wealthy writer, are exactly paragons of virtue. About the best that can be said of them is that they enjoy life and make the moral compromises they deem necessary to do so.
I don’t want to give away too much of the plot—implausible as it is—but it revolves around the effort of a handsome young fool to go to bed with the gorgeous young wife of a wealthy old fool. An unscrupulous priest, his sly friend, the girl’s mother and ultimately even her husband assist him along the way, with the not incidental help of the mandrake plant.

The FUSION production is enlivened with music and dance, capturing the free-spirited fun of Machiavelli’s pungent language. But beneath the fun, the Florence of the early 16th century turns out to be every bit as corrupt as American politics of the early 21st century.And that, too, may be why “Mandrake” is still able to speak to us across the intervening centuries. Ably directed by Fusion co- founder Jacqueline Reid and imaginatively costumed by Aura Sperling-Price, the play features Paul Blott, Joanne Camp, Bruce Holmes, Ross Kelly, Malcolm Madera, Will Peebles and Kate Costello."

Elyse Sommer, review, Curtain Up Reviews:
"There's a reason The Mandrake has proved to be a happier legacy for its author than his political theories. Beneath the hairbrained scheme, the double entendres and the raunchy physical comedy this is a play with a theme not too dissimilar from Machiavelli's political theory that it often takes ethical compromise to survive in a corrupt world. Thus his characters are all easily persuaded to lie and deceive, or close their eyes to being deceived, in order to improve their lives. In short, The Mandrake puts a comic spin on the maxim, "the end justifies the means", which had its origins way before it became associated with Machiavelli. "

Scott Collins, review, Los Angeles Times:
"...Machiavelli, a true Renaissance man, was also a gifted playwright. In his 1518 farce The Mandrake, he cast his jaundiced eye toward the art of seduction and what did he find? Why, lies, manipulation and other dirty tricks....[Shawn's] text is very modern and colloquial...."

"The Mandrake" Cast

Paul Blott	PAUL BLOTT* Originally from Los Angeles where he performed a variety of Shakespearean roles at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum, Paul is a veteran of New Mexico theatre having appeared in many productions in Santa Fe and Albuquerque. He appeared with FUSION this season in Charles Mee's First Love. Last season, he was "Father" in Sarah Ruhl's eurydice and “Willy Loman” in Death of a Salesman. He also starred in the Jury Award-winning "Gun Metal Blue Bar" and "Laying Off" in The Seven: That One Thing. He also performed in "Laying Off" at the Samuel French OOB in NYC. Previously, he was “Big Daddy” in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Paul’s film work includes Lightening Jack, Lazarus Man, Last Stand at Saber River, Bordertown, Wildfire, Beer for My Horses, Run for Her Life and the new USA series In Plain Sight. When not acting Paul and his wife Susie run their own herb business, Aroma Fresca.
Joanne Camp	JOANNE CAMP* is thrilled to be working with FUSION Theatre Company having just moved to Albuquerque from New York City this August. Ms Camp’s NYC credits include Broadway: Dinner at Eight, The Last Night of Ballyhoo, The Sisters Rosensweig, The Heidi Chronicles (Drama Desk & Tony Award nominations), and Coastal Disturbances. Off-Broadway: 25 years as a member of The Pearl Theatre Company where she performed in over 50 productions playing roles ranging from "Atossa" in Aeschylus’ Persians, to "Beatrice" in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing to "Millamant" in Congreve’s The Way of the World to "Ranyevskaya" in Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard to "Miss Prism" in The Importance of Being Ernest to "Albertine Prine" in Lillian Hellman’s Toys in the Attic and her work was recognized with an Obie Award for Continued Excellence and a Joseph A Callaway Award for Classical Performance; Geniuses (Clarence Derwent & Theatre World Awards), Painting Churches, As It Is In Heaven, and Lips Together, Teeth Apart. Film/TV: Private Parts, Law & Order, Damages, The Luckiest Man in the World, and Canterbury’s Law. Joanne has been a proud member of the Actors Equity Association since 1978.
Kate Costello	KATE COSTELLO^ continues her run with FUSION, having recently performed in Tennesse William’s A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur and Charles L. Mee’s First Love. Last season she was “Little Stone” in Sara Ruhl’s Eurydice as well as performing in The Seven: That One Thing and FUSION’s touring production of Brad Gromelski’s The Invention. She appeared in the first The Seven: Games People Play with FUSION, as well as numerous other productions nationally. Kate received her BA from UNM and MFA from SMU in Dallas. She is eternally thankful for the support from her family.
Bruce Holmes	BRUCE HOLMES* most recently appeared with FUSION in this season's How the Other Half Loves by Alan Ayckbourn. Previously, he appeared in Jen Silverman's award-winning The Education of Macoloco as part of The Seven: New Works, which recently won the Samuel French Off Broadway New Works Festival. He was "Ned" in Parlour Song and "Teddy" in The Homecoming. He made his debut here as "Christy" in Martin McDonaugh's The Lieutenant of Inishmore. In Seattle, he worked at A.C.T., Center Stage, AHA!, N.W. Shakespeare Ensemble, and The Empty Space Theatre. Favorite roles at The Space include “Pat” in The True History of Coca-Cola in Mexico, “Jess” in The Complete Wrks of Wilm Shakespeare Abridged, “Horace” in The School for Wives, “Bertozzo” in Accidental Death of an Anarchist and “Sgt. Match” in What the Butler Saw. In Idaho, Bruce performed with The Idaho Repertory Theatre as “Leon” in Voice of the Prairie, “Max” in Lend Me a Tenor, “Trevor” in Bedroom Farce, and as “Andrew” in I Hate Hamlet. In Washington D.C., he appeared as a longshoreman in Arena Stage’s Anna Christie, and “Pee-Wee” in Orpheus Descending. At the Washington Shakespeare Theatre, he appeared as “Sampson” in Romeo & Juliet. In Virginia, Bruce appeared as “The Narrator” in For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again at The Metro Stage Theatre. He received his B.F.A. from the University of New Mexico and his M.F.A. from the Professional Actor’s Training Program at the University of Washington.
Ross Kelly	ROSS KELLY* is a local actor, writer and director with many memorable roles to his credit at FUSION. This season, he appeared in How the Other Half Loves by Alan Ayckbourn.. Last season, he was "Biff" in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, "Dale" in Jez Butterworths's Parlour Song, and "Nasty Interesting Man/Lord of the Underworld" in Sarah Ruhl's eurydice. Previously, he starred in The Lieutenant of Inishmore and the acclaimed production of Doubt. Notable performances include Hip-Hop Prophets, an official selection of the Washington, D.C. Hip-Hop Theater Festival in 2003; The Amy Biehl Story, in which he appeared opposite Academy Award winner Alan Arkin. He can also be seen in the films Save Me with Judith Light, Trade starring Kevin Kline and a recurring role in the ABC Family television show Wildfire. He recently completed filming on Love'n' Dancing with Betty White and The War Boys with Peter Gallagher. Ross is a proud father and a graduate of The University of New Mexico.
Malcolm Madera	MALCOLM MADERA* returns to FUSION, where he earned his professional debut in 2002 in our thrilling production of "Buried Child" by Sam Shepard. Since then, his stage credits include Al's Business Cards~ (Theatre Row, NYC), The Pied Pipers of the Lower East Side~ (PS 122 and Theatre 80, NYC), Somewhere In The Pacific* (The Atlantic Stage 2, NYC), I.E. In Other Words (The Flea, NYC), Sickle (ATA, NYC). Malcolm trained at the Drama Studio London where parts included the title role in Macbeth, Maj. Robbie Ross/Ketch in Our Country's Good, and Demetrius in A Midsummer Nights Dream. Film and TV- Romeo and Juliet vs. The Living Dead (Third Star Films), Circledrawers (Poppoli Pictures), Guiding Light (CBS), and All My Children (ABC). While in London, Malcolm performed at the historic Old Vic theatre in the Old Vic New Voices 24 Hour Plays and is a proud company member of At Play Productions. Malcolm is thrilled to be back in NM working with the wonderful folks at FUSION, where he made his professional stage debut in 2002. ~New York Times critics pick
Will Peebles	WILL PEEBLES* has an MFA in acting from ART at Harvard. He is proud to be making his second appearance with FUSION, having played “Brendan” in The Lieutenant of Inishmore. Notable stage roles in the US have included “Tom Snout” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The American Repertory Theatre and “Kevin” in Modern Dance for Beginners at The Cherry Lane Theatre. In his native UK, he has worked with the Cambridge Shakespeare Company and appeared at various venues in London and at the Edinburgh Festival. He has recently been making forays in to the world of standup comedy.
	* member Actors Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States ^ Equity Membership Candidate