Theater review part deux: Man of La Mancha

by Mandy Rausch of John Garcia's The Column

Imagine, if you will, that you’ve been assigned to review a show that, for all intents and purposes, your “boss” is appearing in (whom I’ve never met face to face until after the show). No pressure, right? Then, once you arrive at the theatre and take a seat with your guests, you discover you’ve chosen to sit directly in front of the production team! No pressure! Luckily, I had little to worry about. ONSTAGE in Bedford’s production of Man of La Mancha, despite a few distractions here and there, is put together very well and features some unique touches and some truly wonderful performances.

The story of Don Quixote and the musical is based on a story that I hold near and dear to my heart; I have figurines of the Knight and his faithful Sancho Panza in my house and my office at work. Perhaps it is because as artists, one can identify with him: He faces obstacles in his quest by those who do not understand his motives or his drive to become something more and do something greater in the world. The song “The Impossible Dream” is one of the most beloved and widely known songs in our culture, being covered by everyone from Cher to Nine Inch Nails to Elvis Presley due to the fact that, even taken out of context, the song speaks to us all on some level. Furthermore, who can truly argue with statements such as, “Love who you are, not who you will become?”

Any actor chosen to play this beloved knight-errant has a daunting task ahead of him. He must portray three very separate and different characters: Don Miguel de Cervantes, the poet; Alonzo Quijana, an old gentleman; and Don Quixote de La Mancha, the alter ego Quijana adopts after years of reading about chivalry and injustice. Tom DeWester makes it look easy. He handles the transitions between characters easily, which is not only thrilling to watch but also gives the audience a much easier time distinguishing when we are back in the prison cell and when we are in Cervantes’ world of Don Quixote. His very first transformation from Cervantes into Quixote, thanks to some skillful staging by director Dennis Yslas and lighting by Robert Dennard, in addition to DeWester’s brilliant physicalization of the character, is breathtaking.

In a small space such as the stage at the ONSTAGE Trinity Arts Theater, we are able to see every small movement and facial expression, and what a treat that is while watching Tom DeWester! His eyes play such a large part in helping us to distinguish between the characters and the different emotions of each, resulting in a performance that is flawless and consistent. Vocally, he masters the role with his truly beautiful baritone voice. His “Man of La Mancha” is strong and upbeat, while his “Dulcinea” is tender and beautiful. If I had to give one criticism to DeWester, I would have preferred a more distinct journey during “The Impossible Dream.” Rather than starting off a bit tentative and building to a strong crescendo, it was very strong throughout. However, I applaud his choice and his ability to back it up vocally.

Who would Don Quixote be without his faithful manservant and friend Sancho Panza and his Dulcinea, his perfect image of a lady he has projected upon a kitchen wench named Aldonza? John Garcia also has a challenge in portraying a marked difference between the humble manservant of Cervantes’ and the cheeky yet ever-loyal Sancho Panza, and he also succeeds in this task. His Sancho is lovable and energetic, and Garcia’s comedic timing is spot on (most notably in the “Missive”), though I would encourage him to slow down his delivery a bit at times.

Emily Antrainer as Aldonza is feisty and strong-willed. I would encourage her to use a bit less of the “dirty prisoner” makeup on her face, though, because it was so dark that it hid some of her facial expressions. Her acting is strong, especially in her scenes with the Muleteers, but unfortunately Antrainer’s voice cannot handle the entire range of the role. The role of Aldonza is a strange one, likely written for Joan Diener, who originated the role and also reportedly had a three-and-a-half octave vocal range. Antrainer gives it a good effort, but unfortunately her struggles are evident and bring her out of character a bit in certain, more difficult moments vocally.

DeWester, Garcia, and Antrainer give heartbreaking performances in the death scene; the affection that Sancho feels for his friend and the tenderness that Aldonza finally comes to feel for Quixote is palpable, and their emotions are held over into the following scene as prisoners when the Captain of the Inquisition returns. Their tears are real and their unspoken goodbyes are very moving and provide a nice contrast for the strength of stature with which Cervantes approaches his fate.

Anyone who has read any of my reviews so far will have noticed how much I enjoy it when smaller roles make a big impression! This was the case with the Muleteers in this production. Kirk Corley, Jared Johnson, Kevin O’Connor, Danny O’Connor, Enrique Olachea, Blake Rodgers, and David Seil work well together and alternately made me laugh with their macho behavior and cringe in their uncomfortably believable abuse of Aldonza. Kirk Corley, in particular, stood out to me and drew my eye in the scenes involving the Muleteers with his strong stage presence and consistency of character.

All of the fight scenes were very well choreographed and impressive in their use of the small space. Director Yslas, Choreographer Darius-Anthony Robinson, and fight Captain Corley all played a part in the creation of the fight choreography -- kudos to all of them for pulling off the difficulty and reality of both sequences.

The rest of the cast was also quite strong. Phil Nixon is excellent as The Governor/Innkeeper and uses his supporting role very well to really show his acting skills. He is one of the few prisoners to show a genuine change in attitude towards Cervantes throughout his “trial.” Deborah Dennard is quite funny as Quijana’s housekeeper, and David Cook’s performance of “The Psalm” as the Padre is beautiful and reverent. I thoroughly enjoyed the presence of the guitar player onstage (Enrique Olachea), and I thought that, overall, the prisoners managed to stay involved in the story throughout (although I did see a few yawns!). Nonetheless, it is quite a feat when none of the actors leave the stage at all. Remember, they are in a prison and this is a “play within a play.”

However, in my introduction to this review I mentioned a few distractions. I would encourage all of the actors to be very cognizant of their accent and dialect and their use of modern vernacular in ad-libbing scenes. Casey L. Carter as the Duke/Dr. Carrasco/Knight of the Mirrors was probably the most distracting in this, and I hate to admit that it made the climactic scene in which Alonzo Quijana is forced to recognize that he is an “aging fool” much weaker than it should have been. Carter has the right idea in his acting and his attitude as the Duke, but should just watch that Texas accent!

One of the most successful moments contributed to by the entire cast, was when the “trial” in the prison and Cervantes’ retelling of Quixote’s story is suddenly interrupted by the appearance of the Captain of the Inquisition, who tells Cervantes that he only has a short time left before facing judgment. The action comes to an abrupt halt as the burden of reality sets in. Cervantes decides to improvise an ending to Quijana/Quixote’s story, ending not with his defeat by the Knight of the Mirrors, but instead with the knight-errant flanked by his friends and family as he dies still clinging to his wonderful, Impossible Dream.

The feeling of hope even in death pervades, and provides what we can only hope is a foreshadowing of what Cervantes’ fate may be when he faces the Inquisition. While Cervantes faces his judgment with head held high and his manservant Sancho in fearful tears walking behind him, the prisoners stand together for the first time and sing his Credo as they watch their procession through the windows. It is a very powerful moment from everyone onstage. It is a sad ending that leaves us unsure of their fate, but as with Quixote’s death, a message of hope remains.

Visually, the production succeeds as well. The set design by Charlotte Newman and Robert Dennard is simple, but the choices made in its design were effective, especially in the use of the creaking ramp that is raised and lowered any time the Captain of the Inquisition enters the prison, and the windows to the prison, which are used well in the enhancement of the lighting as well as to give the prisoners an opportunity to follow the progress of Cervantes and his manservant as they are led to the Inquisition during the Finale. As I mentioned before, it can be difficult for an audience to follow the distinctions between the prison scenes and Don Quixote’s story, but Robert Dennard’s abrupt lighting design greatly aided in this, and were much appreciated by this critic! I also enjoyed his use of lighting in creating the offstage windmill “giant” that Quixote runs off to fight.

Yslas has created beautiful stage pictures throughout Cervantes’ telling of the story of Don Quixote, most notably in the scenes involving Quijana’s family, and Ryan Mathieu Smith’s costumes, coupled with Shavai Hopkins’ props, allow the cast to easily flip-flop from being bedraggled prisoners to the different members of Quijana’s life and Quixote’s story.

Music Director Larry Miller & Associate Musical Director Jeff Crouse had quite a challenge, putting together an orchestra of six to play such a lush and beautiful score, but they made very smart choices and chose talented musicians to accomplish such a feat. While I was a little disappointed not to hear the beautiful overture, I appreciated their use of the onstage guitar player to open the show, rather than forcing an orchestra devoid of brass to play such a piece.

Overall, OnStage in Bedford has accomplished quite a feat in putting together a show of such magnitude of script and score on an intimate stage. Despite a few distractions, which really are minor in the grand scope of the production, it is most certainly a production not to be missed – especially for anyone who has ever chased windmills or dreamed impossible dreams!