50th Anniversary Production of MAN OF LA MANCHA Slated for London This Autumn
Man of La Mancha, Dale Wasserman, Joe Darion and Mitch Leigh's "musical within a play", will have a short run in London to mark the 50th anniversary of its first Broadway performance. From 25th November to 5th December, the City of London's premier amateur theatre company Sedos will transform the Bridewell Theatre into a dungeon of the Spanish Inquisition and take you through the magnificent journey of Miguel de Cervantes' most famous character Don Quixote.
Dale Wasserman wrote Man of La Mancha in 1959 as a non-musical teleplay: "I, Don Quixote" inspired by the 17th century novel by Miguel de Cervantes. In 1964, Wasserman joined forces with Joe Darion and Mitch Leigh to write the musical Man of La Mancha, which premiered at ANTA Washington Square Theatre in Greenwich Village on 22nd November 1965 - 50 years to the day before Sedos gets into the theatre to starts its run of the show. The piece won five Tony awards and became one of the most played musicals of all time. It has been translated into over 15 languages, including various Spanish dialects.
Roger Harwood, co-director of the Sedos production, says: "In late 1970's when I was about 14 I took home the LP of the original London production from the Wellington Public Library and instantly fell in love with the score and story. It was the first show I dreamed of directing."
Man of La Mancha tells the story of Don Miguel de Cervantes, who uses his powers of storytelling to entrance his fellow prisoners while awaiting trial in front of the Spanish Inquisition. Cervantes lifts his companions out of the dungeon of despair into the story of errant wannabe knight Don Quixote and his trusty sidekick Sancho as they embark on a journey full of laughter, love and unruly windmills.
The show presents a particular challenge as a musical within a play - all the actors need to embody two and sometimes three very different personas. With clever lighting and use of Cervantes' "possessions", the cast will take the audience back and forth out of the dungeon and into the magical countryside of La Mancha, land of brave knights, beautiful "Dulcineas" and impossible dreams.
This production is directed by Roger Harwood and Dawn Harrison-Wallace, who return to the directors' seat after a couple of years away. Their previous successful joint ventures include Sweeney Todd (2007), Kiss of the Spider Woman: the Musical (2010), A Little Night Music (2011) and Baby (2012).
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