The song “The Impossible Dream / The Quest” has become since its creation in 1965, an international standard covered by Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Diana Ross or Ken Boothe. Its adaptation by Jacques Brel in 1968 will also make it a French-speaking success.
Jacques Brel was so fond of the musical by Dale Wasserman, Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion that he obtained the rights to translate, adapt and perform in French this show based on Don Quixote, the legendary hero of Cervantes, a character with whom he identified very strongly. 50 years later, Michael De Cock and Junior Mthombeni’s production is an ode to Brel and Brussels, to imagination, poetry and the impossible dreams that this era so desperately needs.
Synopsis
In his cell, Cervantes awaits his hearing before the Inquisition. He presents his defense to the other prisoners, in the manner of a play, in a mock trial. He plays Alhonso Quiana, a man who has put aside his own reality to become Don Quixote de la Mancha. Aided by his squire Sancho Panza, he tries to avoid his mortal enemy, the Enchanter. Determined to defend all that is good and right at a time when the odds are stacked against him, Quixote arms himself with boundless courage and we are all compelled to follow his unreachable star. Join Don Quixote as he pursues his impossible dream of chasing the beautiful Princess Dulcinea – and some windmills.
First performed November 22, 1965 by Albert Marre at the Anta Washington Square Theatre in New York.
First performed on October 4, 1968 at La Monnaie in Brussels.
Kvs Coproduction De Munt / La Monnaie, Théâtre De Liège, Dc&J Création, Teatro Español (Madrid), Instituto Cervantes, Instituto Nacional De Artes Escénicas Del Uruguay, Dirección De Cultura De La Intendencia De Montevideo, Cultural Services Of The Embassy Of Spain In Belgium Avec le soutien de Taxshelter Du Gouvernement Fédérale Belge Man Of La Mancha Is Presented By Arrangement With The Musical Company, Lp, 214 Sullivan Street, Ste. 4, New York, Ny, 10012-1354. www.themusicalcompany.com phone: (212) 598-2204. Email: info@themusicalcompany.com
