"You cannot escape conversations about homeless encampments right now. So as I was thinking about how to set Man of La Mancha in a contemporary setting, I thought this would be timely," says Kelly Van Oosbree, director and choreographer of Platte Valley Players' reimagined production. "The musical is set in a prison and, obviously, homelessness is not a prison, but there are a lot of similar themes around both situations."
Now Brighton’s acclaimed community theater is set to bring the Tony Award-winning Man of La Mancha, inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's masterpiece Don Quixote, to life in a daring new staging. Although the musical is traditionally set in a prison during the Spanish Inquisition, this production places Don Quixote in a modern-day homeless encampment in Denver to reflect the struggles and dreams of a community in crisis.
The story unfolds as Cervantes, portrayed by two-time Henry Award winner Jeffrey Parker, discovers fellow camp residents determined to burn the manuscript of his novel, Don Quixote. In a bid to salvage his masterpiece, Cervantes enlists them in a performance of the story, about an elderly man who believes he is a knight errant pursuing impossible dreams in the face of despair.
"I fell in love with the story from the first read-through," says actor George Zamarripa, who plays Don Quixote's squire, Sancho Panza. "I think what really spoke to me was that it didn't really hit you over the head with a message, which really bothers me. I do not like musicals with cheesy messages like 'Everything is all peace and love,' because it is an overly simplistic answer. Man of La Mancha is about finding your purpose, and while everyone's purpose is different, everyone has to find it."
For Parker, playing Cervantes represents the achievement of a seemingly impossible dream.
"I was around thirteen years old when my parents first took me to see Man of La Mancha, and while I remember the music more than anything else, it made a significant impact on me," Parker says. "I bought the songbook, and my mom would play it for me and I would sing along; since then, I have never stopped singing the songs. I didn't think I would get the opportunity to play Cervantes because he's a little outside of my wheelhouse; however, it's been very fulfilling to dive into the character. I read the book in preparation, and it's extraordinary. Cervantes is this idiot fool, but he's also noble and rich, which is super interesting while also being hysterical."
It was also helpful that Parker spent the summer working as the director of voice and text on the Colorado Shakespeare Festival's 2023 production of King Lear. Among other things, he was tasked with assisting Ellen McLaughlin, who originated the role of the Angel in Tony Kushner's Angels in America, on how to realistically and safely portray madness on stage each night without damaging her voice.
"This summer really was a master class with Ellen," he admits. "Even though I was technically her teacher, I feel I learned so much from our conversations, and I don't know if there would be this version of Don Quixote without the summer I spent working with her. I really wanted to tap into what I observed in Ellen's performance. I realized you can’t play broadly at madness; you have to be big in specific, thoughtful ways. Because there is so much nuance in the text, you want to make sure your performance does not detract from the musical's message."
Elaborating on the play's themes, actor Adam Luhrs, who plays the Duke and Dr. Carrassco, says he resonated with how the musical "wrestles with these very different ways of looking at the world and how we respond to suffering. It comes to some pseudo-conclusions, but it doesn't give you any solid answers, which feels realistic to me. What satisfying answer is there for human suffering?"
The creative team wanted to be sure to respect people currently experiencing homelessness, and the Platte Valley Players production is helping support Almost Home Inc., Brighton's nonprofit resource for individuals and families experiencing housing insecurity.
"When we decided to set it in an encampment, we didn’t want to exploit homeless people for cheap spectacle," Van Oosbree says. "We operate out of Brighton, so we don't see a ton of homeless encampments around here, but that doesn't mean that there are not homeless people in our community. Almost Home Inc. is a wonderful organization to be helping out, and we are eager to help them get information out about how to solve homelessness in our community."
"Almost Home Inc. is celebrating its thirtieth year of providing assistance to those in our community experiencing homelessness and housing instability," says Rachel Monroe, the philanthropy and communications cirector for Almost Home. "Our programs are designed to make homelessness rare, brief or one-time. We appreciate Platte Valley Players helping to shine a light on our organization and its important mission."
Now Brighton’s acclaimed community theater is set to bring the Tony Award-winning Man of La Mancha, inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's masterpiece Don Quixote, to life in a daring new staging. Although the musical is traditionally set in a prison during the Spanish Inquisition, this production places Don Quixote in a modern-day homeless encampment in Denver to reflect the struggles and dreams of a community in crisis.
The story unfolds as Cervantes, portrayed by two-time Henry Award winner Jeffrey Parker, discovers fellow camp residents determined to burn the manuscript of his novel, Don Quixote. In a bid to salvage his masterpiece, Cervantes enlists them in a performance of the story, about an elderly man who believes he is a knight errant pursuing impossible dreams in the face of despair.
"I fell in love with the story from the first read-through," says actor George Zamarripa, who plays Don Quixote's squire, Sancho Panza. "I think what really spoke to me was that it didn't really hit you over the head with a message, which really bothers me. I do not like musicals with cheesy messages like 'Everything is all peace and love,' because it is an overly simplistic answer. Man of La Mancha is about finding your purpose, and while everyone's purpose is different, everyone has to find it."
For Parker, playing Cervantes represents the achievement of a seemingly impossible dream.
"I was around thirteen years old when my parents first took me to see Man of La Mancha, and while I remember the music more than anything else, it made a significant impact on me," Parker says. "I bought the songbook, and my mom would play it for me and I would sing along; since then, I have never stopped singing the songs. I didn't think I would get the opportunity to play Cervantes because he's a little outside of my wheelhouse; however, it's been very fulfilling to dive into the character. I read the book in preparation, and it's extraordinary. Cervantes is this idiot fool, but he's also noble and rich, which is super interesting while also being hysterical."
It was also helpful that Parker spent the summer working as the director of voice and text on the Colorado Shakespeare Festival's 2023 production of King Lear. Among other things, he was tasked with assisting Ellen McLaughlin, who originated the role of the Angel in Tony Kushner's Angels in America, on how to realistically and safely portray madness on stage each night without damaging her voice.
"This summer really was a master class with Ellen," he admits. "Even though I was technically her teacher, I feel I learned so much from our conversations, and I don't know if there would be this version of Don Quixote without the summer I spent working with her. I really wanted to tap into what I observed in Ellen's performance. I realized you can’t play broadly at madness; you have to be big in specific, thoughtful ways. Because there is so much nuance in the text, you want to make sure your performance does not detract from the musical's message."
Elaborating on the play's themes, actor Adam Luhrs, who plays the Duke and Dr. Carrassco, says he resonated with how the musical "wrestles with these very different ways of looking at the world and how we respond to suffering. It comes to some pseudo-conclusions, but it doesn't give you any solid answers, which feels realistic to me. What satisfying answer is there for human suffering?"
The creative team wanted to be sure to respect people currently experiencing homelessness, and the Platte Valley Players production is helping support Almost Home Inc., Brighton's nonprofit resource for individuals and families experiencing housing insecurity.
"When we decided to set it in an encampment, we didn’t want to exploit homeless people for cheap spectacle," Van Oosbree says. "We operate out of Brighton, so we don't see a ton of homeless encampments around here, but that doesn't mean that there are not homeless people in our community. Almost Home Inc. is a wonderful organization to be helping out, and we are eager to help them get information out about how to solve homelessness in our community."
"Almost Home Inc. is celebrating its thirtieth year of providing assistance to those in our community experiencing homelessness and housing instability," says Rachel Monroe, the philanthropy and communications cirector for Almost Home. "Our programs are designed to make homelessness rare, brief or one-time. We appreciate Platte Valley Players helping to shine a light on our organization and its important mission."
To help set the scene, the design incorporates elements of encampment life. "We're putting the orchestra on stage and have seating on three sides to create a three-quarter thrust," Van Oosbree notes."The actors will actually be on the floor of the Armory, so it feels like the patrons are actually in the encampment. Because Cervantes is a traveling actor, poet and performer, he would have some properties on him, but for the most part, a lot of the things that he's fashioning into props for his play are things that are found in the camp. Benches, buckets, shopping carts, tents and other items commonly found in homeless encampments are incorporated into the show."
By immersing the audience in this environment, the creative team hopes to emphasize empathy and understanding of the challenges of homelessness.
"Anybody who wants to be a good steward in their community should come see this," says assistant director Victoria Holloway. "Part of what I love about doing theater up here in Brighton with Platte Valley Players is that you get this heightened sense that the people are here because they love this and they want to invest their time in the community they cherish. Since this is a show about community putting on a story together, there is something really magical and heightened about that."
"Community theater is built on the backs of the people who care about their communities," Van Oosbree concludes. "Most of the players in our orchestra are members of the BrightonMusic Orchestra, and a lot of folks in the production are returning to Platte Valley Players. And these folks are not doing it for the money; they're doing it because they like telling stories with good people outside their day jobs. If you love Man of La Mancha, then you should definitely come see the show, because likely you haven't seen it done outside of the seventeenth-century Spanish prison. It's also not a show that gets done a whole heck of a lot, so for all the young musical-theater nerds, this is your chance to see it live!"
Man of La Mancha opens Friday, October 20, and runs through Sunday, November 4, at the Armory Performing Arts Center, 300 Strong Street in Brighton. Get tickets at plattevalleyplayers.org.
