 Monterey Herald, Monterey, California PacRep delivers a stunning, near-perfect 'La Mancha' By Barbara Rose Shuler Pacific Repertory Theatre's "Man of La Mancha" is a terrific show, reduced and distilled to near perfection, for a short run in Carmel's small Circle Theatre. Tickets will go fast! That's the Cliff Notes version of the review if you want to head for the ticket phones now and read the rest later. PacRep's 2009 season opener of Dale Wasserman, Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion's megahit about Miguel de Cervantes' beloved "Don Quixote" has the look and taste of an early sellout. As the company's newly minted artistic director, Kenneth Kelleher delivered a stunningly realized concept of this musical adaptation of the classic 16th century tale of the windmill-jousting knight. Like a master chef creating a fine wine sauce, Kelleher's skillful reduction of the core elements of the musical produced a powerful effect. Not only was nothing lost through these choices; the "La Mancha" story emerged more intense, more intimate and alive than ever.
Kelleher decreased the size of the ensemble to a small cast of a dozen versatile performers, most taking multiple roles.
He staged the production in four-quarter round on a spare, cleverly efficient set (that he designed himself) surrounded by the audience. Music director David Gordon brilliantly reduced the instrumentation of the score, transcribing the traditional orchestra parts for two guitars, featuring his virtuoso colleague Terrence Farrell as lead guitarist with Gordon as No. 2. Kelleher even shortened the length of the show by banishing the intermission, thus allowing the tension of the story to build dramatically without a break. As theater patrons have been discovering in recent seasons, Kelleher's PacRep creations reliably engage the imagination with their boldness, inventiveness and surprise. He possesses an untamed artistic imagination, an old theater hand's honed craft and a scintillating intellect. He'll take a familiar drama — say a Shakespeare play — and fashion a fresh, dynamic approach to the work so intriguing that you may find yourself thinking about it for months afterwards, or longer. Curiously, Kelleher has never directed a musical before "La Mancha," and Gordon — who brings a high-octane musical background emphasizing opera, oratorio, art songs and the Baroque repertoire of the era of J.S. Bach — also took his first leap into fully staged modern musical theater in this production. Only the artistic participants in this remarkable, perhaps even reckless, endeavor know the full impact of the Kelleher-Gordon musical theater learning curve during the preparation period. But the result is fabulous. The two directors have created a gem, showcasing a talented ensemble, lead by itinerant Don Quixote specialist Paul Myrvold, who is splendid in the role. Gordon is a highly regarded figure not only in our region but internationally. He is a critically acclaimed operatic tenor who was hired in the '90s by the Carmel Bach Festival to sing the Evangelist in the great Bach "Passions." He now serves on the artistic staff of the festival in many key capacities and has made the peninsula his home and artistic playground. By teaming up with Gordon, Kelleher brought to the project a professional collaborator who is not only an excellent director and singer but also a vocal coach, a musical transcriber, a geeky computer sound designer, a fine actor and guitarist and a man with a deep and thorough understanding of music. All of this and more is in evidence in Gordon's contribution to the production. His presence throughout as guitarist, singer and actor is appropriately understated, but adds special buoyancy and refinement to the production. His sound design and special effects complement the intimate guitar work as does his imaginative vocal additions rendered by members of the ensemble as orchestra-like ornamentations. Joining Myrvold as core principals in "La Mancha" are Lydia Lyons as Aldonza, Quixote's bright lady of unattainable light, and Mike Baker as his loyal squire Sancho Panza. Lyons delivers a gutsy, earthy performance as this tough woman who shrinks from tenderness and makes her living in the rudest possible way. Baker delivers an excellent and utterly charming account of Sancho, ever faithful in spite of the fool's gambits of his master. The three actors balance one another well and establish a strong center of gravity for this production. Stephen Massott menaces to the marrow as Dr. Carrasco and the Knight of the Mirrors, Quixote's arch foe. Tom Donald hits the right balance of gruffness and agreeableness as the innkeeper, who takes a fancy to Quixote in spite of his disturbing eccentricities. Casting Gordon as the Padre is just right, allowing his magnificent vocal authority to shine without unduly overshadowing the vocal work of the others. Thomas L. Marr, Garland Thompson, Erica Racz and El Beh distinguish themselves in various roles throughout the course of the show. The men deliver chilling sequences as the muleteers who taunt and abuse Aldonza. The ensemble work is excellent with fast changes and taut, clean movement in the musical numbers and transitions between scenes. The mirror segment is gripping, with round shields used as bright reflectors enhanced by Joanna Hobbs fine lighting design. Musically, "La Mancha" is supple, captivating and often thrilling. The guitars, boosted by amplifiers, prove so perfect in this production that the thought of a full orchestra seems radical and wrong. And to have guitarist Farrell leading the way is ideal. In the minor quibble department, adapting to a stage bounded by audience members on all sides is a tricky business because to be effective it requires complex staging that mustn't look contrived. Here things wobbled now and then, notably when a Lazy Susan-style rotating pad, employed during the musical number "I'm Only Thinking of Him," became distracting. By the time the musical's signature song "Impossible Dream" rings out from Myrvold as Quixote's sublime philosophy of existence, no one who can produce tears in the audience had dry eyes. By the end of the show opening night, everyone in the theater understood Kelleher and his ensemble had struck theater gold, including Lady Hull, who costumed the show in splendid period garments. This article is online at: http://www.montereyherald.com/gomagazine/ci_12105693 © Monterey County Herald and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved. http://www.montereyherald.com |
