La Mancha & The Fantastick's Grounded In Simplicit

Two local theatre companies prove that keeping true to the original creative team's intent of a story can pay dividends to both the play and the audience. Coincidentally, both remounts of two of the most successful musicals of all time have roots in the 1960's and both focused the lost art of telling a story in the most minimalistic way possible, using the viewers imagination.

The most prominent of this method is 1965's ground breaking Man of La Mancha, where Richard Kiley's remarkable portrayal of Miquel de Cervantes, whose fictional Knight thought that the maddest thing of all is for a person to view life as it is and not as it should be, is retold in Theatre at the Center's production starring one the finest Quixote's to mount Rosinante, James Harms. Mr. Harms possesses a melodic baritone which effortlessly moves through Mitch Leigh's stellar melodies great ease. ‘I Don Quixote', ‘Dulcinea' and ‘The Impossible Dream' remind one of Kiley and the final death scene is simply a tear jerker.

Director William Pullinisi keeps a firm grip on the action, and allows the actors to tell the story within a story in a no nonsense way, and is as close to the original staging as has been done in a long time (Chicago Chamber Opera also did a true to the original spirit production earlier this year). Anyone who witnessed the debacle of the recent Broadway revival knows what I am taking about. The more a director tries to make La Mancha a spectacle, the more the story will fail. It is about imagination, entering in and coming to view one's life with a since of purpose before the consequences of one's actions lead to a life with no meaning.

Erica Mac does a yeoman's job of tackling Aldonza's gravitas. The role is hands down, one of the most difficult written in the musical theatre genre, both physically and vocally. Ms. Mac is stunningly tragic, just as Cerventes' character calls for and her interpretation of the song ‘Aldonza' is a showstopper just as much as Quixote's ‘The Quest'. Many actresses make a mistake of trying to emulate Joan Diener who created the role. Diener's voice was so unique that many songs were rewritten in different keys to show off her instrument, however, those key changes stuck in the published version of the score, much to the chagrin of actresses to follow. Ms. Mac makes the songs her own and is emerging as one of the finest musical theatre actresses Chicago has seen in a long time.

David Perkovich's Sancho Panza has great chemistry with Mr. Harms and the ensemble proves the old adage that there are no small parts as everyone of the cast manifests into different characters with the sole purpose of telling the Knight Errants story.

Man of La Mancha runs through October 15, 2009 at Theatre at the Center, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, IN, For tickets, please call the Box Office at 219-836-3255 or visit www.theatreatthecenter.com

The second musical staged with beautiful simplicity is Porchlight Music Theatre's ‘The Fantasticks'. Having the distinction of being the longest running musical of all time, the Fantastick's also has the unenviable distinction of being the most overproduced musical as it is trotted out by theatre companies who want a popular musical that costs little to present. Though The Fantastick's is often trotted out, it is very rarely done well.

The musical takes place in a suburban town. A boy (Matt Hucklebee) and a girl (Luisa Bellamy) who live next door to each other fall in love, but their romance must be kept secret from their feuding fathers. Later, it is revealed that the "feud" was manufactured by their fathers as a way to bring the two together by making them believe that their love was "forbidden fruit".

Seeking to end the charade, the fathers hire the services of a roving actor and rogue (El Gallo, who is also the play's narrator) to stage a phony "abduction" of Luisa so that Matt can "rescue" her and win the approval of Luisa's father. The plan succeeds, and the two families are united. However, with their love no longer "forbidden fruit", Matt and Luisa begin to grow restless, and the fathers begin feuding for real. Matt leaves to find out what lies "Beyond that Road" while Luisa allows herself to be seduced by El Gallo. Both Matt and Luisa, having been burned by their respective experiences, rediscover their love for each other and try to develop a more mature relationship.

Porchlight's production, directed by Sean Kelly, keeps true to the original concept of simple story telling. Finding what is sure to be the last of the oriental carpets in the city after Lookingglass' Arabian Nights, Porchlight's set is non-existent as was the original, the piano and harp fill the black box with some of the finest songs written for musical theatre. Jeff Parker (will someone please cast this man as the Phantom), is a dashing and engaging El Gallo, who captivates instantly with the classic, ‘Try To Remember' and is quite menacing in ‘The Rape'. The casting coup comes with the incredible Sean Effinger-Dean as Matt and Emma Rosenthal as Luisa who are played more as outcasts then ingénues. This works brilliantly and updates the material ever so subtly yet with results that are very effective.

Both La Mancha and The Fantasticks prove less is more and if you let the story tell itself, true theatre magic can happen as it does here. Directors Pullinsi and Kelly respect the material and trust the actors. That is a winning combination for any decade and gives the creators of the material a voice in today's over produced, commercial theatre.

The Fantasticks runs through Nov. 15 at Theatre Building Chicago, 1225 W. Belmont Ave.; Running time: 2 hours; For tickets please call 773-327-5252 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.