“Who’s mad and who’s sane?” That’s the question posed at the end of the Hippodrome’s riveting production of “Mindgame.” This thriller will keep you guessing until the final seconds as the cast takes you through a maze of blood and gore, camp and reality, comedy and horror. “Mindgame” makes a perfect trick and treat for this Halloween season.
Written by British playwright Anthony Horowitz, “Mindgame” premiered off-Broadway in 2008 with Keith Carradine as DR. Farquhar.
The play begins with pulp fiction-writher Mark Styler waiting for a meeting with Dr. Farquhar, the director of Fair Fields, an asylum for the criminally insane. We eventually meet Nurse Plimpton, who rounds out the cast as the doctor’s provocative assistant. Styler soon becomes familiar with their practice of psychodrama in the treatment of their patients. This setting serves up enough twists and turns, highs and lows, to rival the world’s largest roller coaster. Yet it also incorporates some moments of clarity as dark secrets are revealed, and we began slowly to find our way through this labyrinth to reality – or so we think.
Director Lauren Caldwell has put together an incredible ensemble cast with Todd Zimmerman as Styler, David Sitler as Dr. Farquhar and Sara Morsey as Nurse Plimpton. Just when you begin to feel that one of them is your favorite, the game shifts, the costumes change, and suddenly, you are drawn to another. All three have their “aha” moments, but Morsey stands out in her role as Nurse Plimpton. As the troubled, inappropriately dressed nurse, Morsey continues to develop her character to its final chilling metamorphosis.
Caldwell has incorporated just enough of Robert Robin’s lighting tricks and Risa Baxter’s often-shocking and schlocky soundscape to construct her own amusement ride. She drives it with skill and finesse, with a slow build, and finally racing to a totally unexpected climax. The Hippodrome’s stage is perfect for the intimate set by Carlos Francisco Asse. It reminds us again of the magic of the live theater in such a historic treasure as the Hippodrome.
Published Sunday, Nov.1, 2009 by The Gainesville Sun