:La Mandragola redirects here. For the film, see La Mandragola (film).
The Mandrake
(Italian: La Mandragola
; written in 1518 and first printed in 1524) is a satirical play by Niccolò Machiavelli. Its tale of the corruption of Italian society was written while Machiavelli was in exile, allegedly having plotted against the Medici. The play was written between 1504 and 1518 and first performed in 1518. Callimaco is La Mandragola's prince, his actions are in the pursuit of happiness at the expense of others . Historically scholars connect him to Bernardo Rucellai, a Florentine aristocrat and opponent of Soderini . Lucrezia is the state, Nicia is the "hereditary prince", Father Timeteo is the 'ecclesiastical prince', and Ligurio is the prince's philosopher advisor, or Machiavelli himself.
The play details a 24-hour period . It concerns Callimaco's desire to sleep with Lucrezia, the young and beautiful wife of an elderly fool, Nicia, who, above all else, desires a son and heir. Callimaco, masquerading as a doctor, convinces Nicia to drug Lucrezia with mandrake claiming it will increase her fertility, but adds the dire warning that the Mandrake will undoubtedly kill the first man to have intercourse with her. Callimaco helpfully suggests to Nicia that an unwitting-fool be found for this purpose. Lucrezia, is eventually convinced to comply with her husband's wishes and finally allows a disguised Callimaco into her bed and thereafter accepts him as her lover on a more permanent basis.
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MANDRAGOLA TICKETS
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20th century adaptations and revivals
La Mandragola
was adapted for opera by the composer
Ignatz Waghalter. The opera, richly melodic and deeply sympathetic in its treatment of human foibles, featured a
libretto by Paul Eger and was premiered at the Deutsches Opernhaus in Berlin on
January 23,
1914. It was warmly received by the critics, and was booked for a European tour that was aborted due to the outbreak of the
First World War [1].
The Mandrake
has also enjoyed contemporary revivals, such as that of the
Riverside Shakespeare Company at the Casa Italiana in New York City in 1979, starring
Tom Hanks as Callimaco in his only New York stage performance, directed by Dan Southern, produced by W. Stuart McDowell and Gloria Skurski, with an original jazz score by pianist
Michael Wolff, original masks and costumes by Broadway designer Jane Stein, sets by Gerard Bourcier (after Italian Renaissance designs, see photo, right), and lighting designed by John B. Forbes.
[2] The play was also produced in the Olivier auditorium of London's
National Theatre in 1984, in a translation by
Wallace Shawn.
[3]
In 2008 a new film version of La Mandragola under the title
The Mandrake Root. Adapted and directed by
Malachi Bogdanov, it was shot on HD in
Sassari,
Sardinia,
Italy. Produced by
European Drama Network, it was made in English with limited Italian sections and it remains close to the original story. It was nominated for a Royal Television Society award in the UK in 2008.
A musical adaptation,
Mandragola
, composed by
Doug Riley with libretto by
Alan Gordon made its debut in
Canada over
CBC Radio on
October 13,
1977, and was later issued as an LP record on the CBC label.
References
- ''Signale'', January, 1914
- Review by Jann Racquoi, ''Heights/Inwood Press of North Manhattan'', March 14, 1979.
- National Theatre Website List of Past Productions