VIDEO: On This Day, December 5- Brian Stokes Mitchell Stars in MAN OF LA MANCHA on Broadway!

Today we celebrate the Broadway production of Man of La Mancha, which debuted on this day in 2002, starring Tony-winner Brian Stokes Mitchell.

Based on The Adventures of Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes y Saavedra, Man of La Mancha is a comic tragedy of mankind's struggle to better both himself and the world in which he lives. In this soaring musical by Dale Wasserman, Cervantes and his servant, Sancho, are cast into prison by the Spanish Inquisition. In order to win his personal effects back from the thieves and robbers in the prison, Cervantes enlists the inmates' assistance in telling the tale of this "Knight of the Woeful Countenance" who tilts at windmills and champions lost causes.

The original production starred Broadway favorite, Brian Stokes Mitchell as Don Quixote. The role earned him a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical.