First play of spring sings its way into audiences' hearts
— Fullerton College Hornet - Natasha Martinez - Wednesday, March 16th, 2011
The Theatre Departments' "Man of La Mancha" did not fail to impress this past weekend. With a strong vocal cast and impressive set and light design, the show was a success. Based on Dale Wassermans novel, "Man of La Mancha" is about Miguel de Cervantes as he and his fellow prisoners face trail during the Spanish Inquisition.
The prisoners decide to host their own trail amongst themselves, on whether or not they salvage Cervantes' play, "Man of La Mancha."
In Cervantes' defense, he performs the play for the prisoners while including them as his characters as well. The play was filled with comedy, imagination and inspiration.
"The show is vocally and visually stunning. The story of Don Quixote does a lot in terms of inspiration. Nowadays people give up when things get tough, we live in a 'I want it now' society, but Don Quixote is so willing to 'March in through Hell' to fight for what he thinks is right," said Jonathan Fierros who plays Anselmo, a Muleteer in the play."
Among the cast were Steve Jones and Lauren Howard who play Don Quixote and Aldonza. The two performers were the cherry on top of the already strong and entertaining cast.
Jones made his switch from portrying Cervantes to Quixote believable and Howard seemed the perfect fit to play the fiery and feisty Aldonza.
The entire cast proved to the audience that exceptional singers can also act.
The show had light yet genuine comedy through out, as the cast carried the story of the "wisest madman or the maddest wiseman."
The cast began preparing for the show in January with extensive practices that ran Sunday through Wednesday nights every week.
During tech week the cast rehearsed for 12 hours and the week before the performance they rehearsed everyday.
During the intense rehearsals the cast was still getting used to working with the new revolving set.
Director Chuck Ketter expressed how it was hard dealing with the new set so close to the opening of the show but the students understood and were able to handle the changes.
"I've been fortunate to have a strong cast, "said Ketter.
The show runs through next weekend, however the Friday and Saturday dates are sold out for students from the High School Theatre Festival this weekend.
Thursday is the last show open to the general public. For ticket information contact the campus box office at (714) 992-7150.
Areas of Study...
Acting, Performance and Musical Theatre
Each season of plays provides a wide variety of roles and production post experiences for Theatre students. High production values, current state of the art technologies, and a wide spectrum of very challenging styles and subject matter make the performance venues excellent laboratories for student exploration and growth.
Directing and Playwriting
Few community colleges offer students opportunities to study directing and playwrighting in their first two years of undergraduate study. Students follow the classwork they successfully complete with opportunities to compete for assignments in the Playwrights Festival and the Directors Festival.
General Education
For both the non-major and the major alike, the Theatre Arts general education courses meet university transfer requirements and allow the student to build a strong foundation of introductory knowledge to the many facets of theatre-making and theatre-study.