Is a MAN OF LA MANCHA Revival Heading to Broadway?

The Washington Post reports that MAN OF LA MANCHA may be heading to the Great White Way for a 50th-anniversary revival. Reports of a possible Broadway transfer began when Martha Nelly Wasserman, widow of 'La Mancha' book writer Dale Wasserman, and current holder of the rights to the musical, paid a visit to the Shakespeare Theatre Company's hit production of the musical last Saturday to meet the cast and creative team and share a champagne toast.

In a post-show speech, she commented that she was "looking for stars" to take the show back to Broadway. She also praised the cast and director and singled out Amber Iman's performance as Aldonza for her "big, beautiful voice."

"There is no other show like it, and I don't say that because my husband wrote it," Wasserman said. "I see all the shows. What is 'Oklahoma'? It is two guys fighting over who will take a girl to lunch. 'My Fair Lady'? So what? A girl wants to learn English."

She continued, "'Man of La Mancha is the only musical that is about the audience..."Every single night, the audience has just stood up because they recognize something in this piece, something magical."

MAN OF LA MANCHA originally opened Nov. 22, 1965, and ran for close to six years. Brian Stokes Mitchell earned a Tony nomination for his lead role in the most recent 2003 revival of the show.

Below, watch Brian Stokes Mitchell perform "The Impossible Dream (The Quest)" with Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio on the 57th Annual Tony Awards, June 8, 2003

Image courtesy of Shakespeare Theater Company