BWW Reviews: Squabbalogic's MAN OF LA MANCHA Is A Fantastic Interpretation Of This Musical Play Within A Play.

Tuesday 10 March 2015, Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre, NSW

Dale Wasserman's MAN OF LA MANCHA comes to life in Squabbalogic's ingenious performance that draws the audience into Miguel de Cervantes' fabulous imagination as he and fellow inmates, awaiting their fate during the Spanish Inquisition, play out the story of Don Quixote de La Mancha using only the contents of the prison cell and Cervantes' box of possessions.

The space at the Reginald Theatre is used to full effect as Miguel de Cervantes (Tony Sheldon) and his manservant (Ross Chisari) utilize the catwalk and house stairs to descend into the prison 'common room', as the guards have described the pillar lined space, as Cervantes possessions are lowered to a frenzy of prisoners willing to fight for what they can find. Simon Greer has artfully created a space that allows prisoners to retreat to corners and hollows as they wait for scenes to play out or provide instrumental accompaniment. Benjamin Brockman's lighting transforms the space from a prison dungeon, complete with shadows of light through a grating, to the world of La Mancha in Cervantes' story, adding suspense, movement and whimsy with flickering lights, broad washes, and suspended filament bulbs.

50 years after the Tony Award winning musical was first staged on Broadway, the work that is a stylized version of Cervantes and his famous story is artfully interpreted by Director Jay James-Moody in the intimate space. Whilst some staging of the work employs elaborate sets to create La Mancha, this set is dressed with the accoutrements that could be found in a dungeon cell. The costumes are explained by Cervantes, a poet, actor and tax collector's box of possessions and the creation of the rest of the world relies on the performers sparking the audience imagination.

Sheldon provides a stand out performance as Cervantes and Alonso Quijana/Don Quixote. He gives Cervantes the quick thinking confidence required to convince his fellow prisoners to hear his story despite mock trial's cynical prosecutor, The Duke's (Joanna Weinberg) reservations. His portrayal of Don Quixote, showing the signs of Quijana's madness as he convinces himself that he is the knight Don Quixote de La Mancha, fighting 4 armed ogres, seeing kitchen wenches as virginal Ladies, and shaving basins as magical helmets, is distinctly different to his characterization of Cervantes ensuring that the audience sees when he is slipping out of Don Quixote to return to Cervantes to instruct the prisoners to create a new scene. His vocal range is flexible as he ranges from the humorous I, Don Quixote, the adoring, love filled Dulcinea, and the hopeful, heartwarming version of The Impossible Dream.

Chisari is amusing as Cervantes' loyal manservant and Don Quixote's bumbling devoted squire Sancho Panza. His renditions of I Really Like Him and A Little Gossip allow him to play up Sancho's innocence and naivety in these comic pieces. Marika Aubrey as the serving wench and whore, Aldonza, shines in a role that gives her scope to demonstrate her acting and vocal abilities. Her pure, clear, annunciated vocals, in contrast to the low class nature of her character blend well with Don Quixote's view of her as the pure Dulcinea. Aubrey works through Aldonza's character development from cynical, accepting the payment for services from the head muleteer in It's All The Same, and believing Quixote is mad, to understanding his idealism and chivalry.

The ensemble fill in the rest of the characters Cervantes has created, utilizing great physical humor, improvised costuming and cheeky expressions to tell the stories through drama and song. The lyrics (Joe Darion) and dialogue are clever and delivered with perfect comic timing and tone and the music is catchy and varied from heavy percussion to the gentle flute melodies, and bold brass.

This is a delightful performance that draws the audience into Cervantes' imagination for a 120 minute expression of a performance within a performance as Cervantes seeks to save his treasured manuscript and awaits trial. The music is catchy and the premise of believing nobility and having the drive to do something you believe in is uplifting.

MAN OF LA MANCHA

25 February - 21 March 2015

Reginald Theatre, Seymour Centre, Chippendale, NSW

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