Volpone Cast
Emily Abrams
(Nano)
By day, Emily is a mild-mannered 7th grade science teacher. In the evening
and at other times, she has participated in theater productions through
the Shakespeare at Winedale program, The Austin Free Shakespeare Society,
The Broccoli Project, Frontera Fest, and The Naked Spleen improvisational
comedy troupe.
Andy Bond (Volpone)
Andy is a graduate of the University of Texas and a veteran of the Shakespeare
at Winedale program. While at Winedale he learned about the tremendous
emotional impact of live performance, and he performs to this day because
"there is something truly magical about the imaginative journey that audiences
and players take together." Active in the local theater community since
1994, Andy has performed with The Boxtree Players (The Taming of the Shrew),
Rude Mechanicals (Prometheus Unbound, Ubu Roi), the Austin Free Shakespeare
Society (Henry IV: Part I, The Comedy of Errors) and helped found The
Bedlam Faction.
Robert Deike (Mosca)
Robert has been involved in the Austin theatre scene for fifteen years.
Having stumbled upon performance by unwittingly signing up for the Shakespeare
at Winedale program, Robert has since been a member of the UT Theatre
Collective, The Wheetzah Players, The Barefoot Players, The Public Domain,
Different Stages, The Austin Free Shakespeare Society, and now The Bedlam
Faction. In these modern times, TV and movies have created a society of
passive spectators that was not so true even a century before. Robert's
passion is to reawaken the audience to the possibilities of becoming willing
participants in the celebration of life we call: PLAY!
Anne Engelking Earvolino (Lady Politic Would-Be, Androgyno)
Anne Engelking Earvolino has been performing in Austin for over five years
in productions by The Boxtree Players, The Colonial Shakespeare Company,
The Downstage Players, and Rude Mechanicals. Also a former Shakespeare
at Winedale student, she rejoices in collaborating with her peers in The
Bedlam Faction. After a six-year career as a science textbook editor,
Anne plans to move to Chicago this fall with her husband, Pat, in order
to obtain her MBA from Kellogg.
Travis Hale (Corbaccio)
T-rav is a (first-year) senior at the University of Texas, studying English
and film. He first learned about the magic of performing as a student
in the Shakespeare at Winedale program and as a member of The Austin Free
Shakespeare Society. He has performed at The Globe Theatre, in London;
the Swan Theatre, in Stratford; and the Orange Tree, in Richmond. As a
member of The Bedlam Faction, he looks forward to being in many other
productions where he can continue his passion for playing.
Johnbo (Music)
Johnbo has written, arranged and performed music for The Austin Free Shakespeare
Society's productions of Comedy of Errors, Henry IV: Part I, and The Two
Gentlemen of Verona. He has been participating in many other theatrical
works around Austin for four years. Johnbo also plays with various bands
and is helping to arrange music for A Muse of Fire, a documentary film
about the Shakespeare at Winedale program, as well as writing and recording
the soundtrack for Mark Lovell's Vicious Cyclone.
Matt Kozusko (Corvino)
Matt is a part-time Austinite completing a Ph.D. in Renaissance drama
at the University of Georgia. He has performed locally with Shakespeare
at Winedale and abroad with student groups in Oxford, England.
Mark Lovell (Voltore)
Mark has performed in over a dozen Shakespeare plays within the last five
years, including the highly lauded The Austin Free Shakespeare Society's
Comedy of Errors and Two Gentlemen of Verona. With the enthusiasm for
ensemble acquired from his Shakespeare at Winedale training, Mark brings
a frenetic and cartoonlike energy to his often goofy and beguiled characters.
His day job involves producing graphic artwork for gambling games and
slot machines, and his dream is to produce a Kung-Fu/Action-Adventure/Cyberpunk/Horror-Flick/Sci-Fi/Alien-Conspiracy
movie. And yes, he's serious about that.
Robert Matney (Sir Politic Would-Be)
Robert is a University of Texas graduate steadfastly using his philosophy
degree as a Technical Support Agent at Apple Computers. In the past six
years he has been a student in the Shakespeare at Winedale program, co-founded
The Austin Free Shakespeare Society, worked with The Public Domain, The
Colonial Shakespeare Company, Rude Mechanicals and also co-founded the
happily, now-defunct Permanent Thisbe Theater Company.
Michael Nelson (Peregrine, Bonario)
Michael is a senior at UT majoring in English. As an Austinite, he has
acted in productions with Loaded Gun Theory, Shakespeare at Winedale,
and a student film organization that let him do a voice-over as a bottle
of Scotch. When not onstage, he works behind the scenes, trying to make
his fellow Factionites think he's smart.
Laura Raley (Castrone)
After a lengthy stint in Shakespeare at Winedale performances playing
Miranda, Juliet, and the Virgin Mary, Laura figured the best way to conclude
this run of virtuous acting would be to play the part of the Eunuch with
the Bedlam Faction. Laura loves water-skiing, all sorts of artsy things,
and devastatingly handsome Romeos. In the fall, Laura is running away
to the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan.
Shanna E. Smith (Celia)
Shanna is a Ph.D. student in Human Development and Family Science at the
University of Texas and also works as a statistical consultant and web
page programmer. She is a Ben Jonson neophyte, but has performed in 15
different Shakespeare productions in and around Austin including those
by Shakespeare at Winedale, The Boxtree Players, The Colonial Shakespeare
Company, and The Austin Free Shakespeare Society.
Musicians / Venetian townspeople
John Botti (musical arrangements, trumpet, trombone, guitar, crowd)
Joseph E. Trent III (drums, crowd) Zachary Firnhaber (bass, crowd)
Jeremy Edwards (mandolin, guitar, crowd)
Steph Tomlinson (clarinet, crowd)
Shawn Somerville (viola, guitar, crowd)
Tracy Jo Barnwell (banjo, percussion, crowd)
Jodi Harris (woman on dock, crowd)
Jane Bond (occasional vocals)
Front of House & Lighting
Marshall Hall
Jaime Martin
Daniel Sacks
Taimur Malik V. Dwarkanath