Quixote

HAND-WRINGING AND name-calling by Democrats is an understandable reaction to Ralph Nader's announcement Sunday that he will make another quixotic bid for president. They blame the crusading consumer advocate for drawing away votes in 2000 that might have gone to Vice President Al Gore and thus tipping the race instead to Republican George W. Bush. But the 69-year-old reformer was less a spoiler than a scapegoat. Mr. Gore had all the advantages of incumbency in a period of peace and prosperity, yet ran such a poor campaign against a relative novice that he couldn't even carry his home state.

Recently, Cardinal-designateEdwin F. O'Brienwrote a stirring letter to all those who worship in the Baltimore Archdiocese, calling on their help to "regain our religious freedom. " The impassioned call to arms suggests the federal government has dealt a "heavy blow" to Catholics and has "cast aside" the First Amendment. What could have so angered the 72-year-old soon-to-be advisor to the pope to justify his call for prayer and fasting until "religious liberty" is restored? Remarkably, it was the recent decision of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Servicesthat requires future health insurance policies, including those administered by religious hospitals and charities, to cover contraception and sterilization.

Washington -- To deluded Don Quixote, all that glitters is truly gold. But the Broadway-bound revival of "Man of La Mancha," now at the National Theatre, has a glitter deficit.For this musical rendition of Cervantes' classic to succeed, the audience must share Quixote's sparkling vision. However, despite an ennobling performance by Raul Julia in the title role, the overall production is lackluster. And for a show whose basic theme is idealism, lackluster is a serious offense.The casting of the leading lady is an ideal example.

Each week The Sun's John McIntyre presents a moderately obscure but evocative word with which you may not be familiar — another brick to add to the wall of your working vocabulary. This week's word: QUIXOTIC We owe this eponymous adjective to Cervantes, whose 17th-century satirical novel about Don Quixote's naive attempts to live out the values and behaviors of chivalry in our post-chivalric world gave a name to apply to all we consider idealistic, impractical and unrealistic.

Man of La Mancha has returned to Broadway repeatedly since its 1965 debut. And it has always hewed to the original design and staging. Until now. When the curtain rises on the Broadway-bound production at Washington's National Theatre, it reveals a new look and a cast of actors who bring fresh interpretations to their roles. Although there's some fine-tuning yet to be done, all indications suggest that this retelling of the beloved Don Quixote musical - with a powerhouse company headed by Brian Stokes Mitchell and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio - will be warmly welcomed when it opens in New York Dec. 5. British director Jonathan Kent has not attempted a wholesale re-envisioning.

"Man of La Mancha" is truly an "unreachable star" for most community theater troupes who don't have access to a gifted performer who can bring Miguel de Cervantes' immortal Don Quixote to the stage in a convincing manner. Surely this is one of the toughest roles in the Broadway canon, for it demands a superb high baritone voice attached to an actor accomplished enough to craft three characters and move from one to the other on the fly. Bowie's 2nd Star Productions has access to just such a performer in Braxton Peters, the actor Annapolitans know best as the in-house director of the Annapolis Opera.

Dale Wasserman's musical retelling of Cervantes' Don Quixote opened on Broadway in 1965 as Man of La Mancha, becoming one of the first dramatic musicals, and followed two decades later by Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables, among others. Man of La Mancha ran for 2,328 performances and won five Tony Awards, including best musical and best actor for Richard Kiley. Running more than 300 performances, the most recent of repeated Broadway revivals starred Brian Stokes Mitchell as Quixote in 2002.

The story of "Don Quixote," that delusional Spaniard who sees windmills as giants and himself as the last of the noble knights, has delighted audiences for nearly 400 years. Even producer Robert Halmi Sr., whose taste for spectacular gimmickry has drained the life out of more than a few classics, can't stop it. Beginning at 8 p.m. Sunday, the latest film adaptation of the Cervantes novel debuts on TNT. And while it's hardly the definitive "Don Quixote," it's an entertaining 2 1/2 hours filled with adventures, dreams and lots of pseudo-jousting.

Tony Award-winning actor Brian Stokes Mitchell performs two rituals whenever he begins a play in a new theater. He burns sage throughout the building to drive out evil spirits. And before the first performance, he gathers the cast on stage and shares the history of the theater. Observing rituals reinforces the actor's belief that his life has followed definite patterns. These patterns go all the way back to his birth, which happened to fall on Halloween, a holiday he believes is an ideal birthday for an actor.

In a season when new musicals seem to be an impossible dream, musical theater lovers must content themselves with revisiting past glories, and the creditable revival of "Man of La Mancha" at the Lyric Opera House is a solid reminder of those glories.It's also an opportunity to see a mint-condition re-creation of this 1965 modern musical classic, with its majestic score by Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion, and its shrewdly crafted book, in which writer Dale Wasserman combined the story of Miguel de Cervantes, imprisoned during the Inquisition, with that of the cockeyed idealistic hero of his masterpiece, "Don Quixote."

Aside from the self-destructive and Walter F. Mondale, politicians don't generally run on a promise to raise taxes. They're more inclined to run from that prospect. So health care advocates probably shouldn't expect to hire extra mail sorters for all the candidates returning pledge forms committing themselves to a proposed "dime a drink" liquor tax increase. Members of the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative are probably aware of this. They've not even bothered with the governor's race and instead directed the campaign entirely at those running for the House of Delegates and state Senate.

Dale Wasserman's musical retelling of Cervantes' Don Quixote opened on Broadway in 1965 as Man of La Mancha, becoming one of the first dramatic musicals, and followed two decades later by Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables, among others. Man of La Mancha ran for 2,328 performances and won five Tony Awards, including best musical and best actor for Richard Kiley. Running more than 300 performances, the most recent of repeated Broadway revivals starred Brian Stokes Mitchell as Quixote in 2002.

The midweek suppers and our house were leaning toward the ho-hum. So in an attempt to put a little spice in our weekday meals, I made pork chops La Mancha. La Mancha is in the center of Spain and is perhaps best known as the land of Don Quixote. Don Quixote is the fictional 17th-century knight who livened up his life by riding around the Spanish countryside on horseback, righting wrongs and attacking windmills. It made for a good novel, if not a great career path. I found a pork-chop recipe that looked promising in a new cookbook about this region of Spain, Cooking From the Heart of Spain, by Janet Mendel (Morrow Cookbooks, 2006)

Out in the wilds of western Howard County, where wide-open spaces can still be found, a brownish house is tucked behind its neighbors, far from the street. Its remote location allows its owner to keep his land as he keeps his beard: unapologetically unkempt. Inside, an old campaign flier hangs over a door frame. Hand-made steel pot hangers and flatware rest on a kitchen island. Boxes and blacksmithing gear, hundreds of math books and computer parts, overwhelm the basement. There's no counter uncluttered or wall bare.

In a certain village in La Mancha, which I do not wish to name, there lived long ago a gentleman . . . It has been four centuries since Miguel de Cervantes wrote those words. And, unlike most other words written that long ago, we are still reading them. Don Quixote celebrates its 400th birthday in 2005, which has made it the subject of celebrations, seminars, exhibits and commemorations throughout the year. The George Peabody Library in Mount Vernon Square is displaying its collection of Don Quixote editions through Jan. 15. The exhibit, Celebrating 400 Years of Don Quixote de la Mancha, traces "the publication history of a work that has been translated more frequently than any other work except the Bible."

HAND-WRINGING AND name-calling by Democrats is an understandable reaction to Ralph Nader's announcement Sunday that he will make another quixotic bid for president. They blame the crusading consumer advocate for drawing away votes in 2000 that might have gone to Vice President Al Gore and thus tipping the race instead to Republican George W. Bush. But the 69-year-old reformer was less a spoiler than a scapegoat. Mr. Gore had all the advantages of incumbency in a period of peace and prosperity, yet ran such a poor campaign against a relative novice that he couldn't even carry his home state.

Olney Theatre Center concludes its 2000 season with the hit 1960s musical, "Man of La Mancha," currently in previews and opening Sunday. Adapted from Cervantes' classic, "Don Quixote," with a book by Dale Wasserman, music by Mitch Leigh and lyrics by Joe Darion, the musical uses a play-within-a-play format to tell the story of both Cervantes and his fictitious hero, Quixote, the undaunted knight who tilted at windmills. Olney's production is directed by John Going and stars Broadway veterans Richard White (the voice of Gaston in Disney's animated "Beauty and the Beast")

Cockpit in Court has dubbed its 20th anniversary season "the possible dream" -- a reworked reference to the best known song from its opening musical, "The Man of La Mancha." However, due to uneven casting, the dream remains merely possible, instead of fully realized.Ironically, the performer who sings "The Impossible Dream" is chiefly responsible for keeping this production's dream from coming true. For even though lead actor Gilbert Polt rallies when it comes time to sing this big number, he is neither sufficiently compelling nor charismatic in the dual roles of Don Quixote and Cervantes.

Man of La Mancha has returned to Broadway repeatedly since its 1965 debut. And it has always hewed to the original design and staging. Until now. When the curtain rises on the Broadway-bound production at Washington's National Theatre, it reveals a new look and a cast of actors who bring fresh interpretations to their roles. Although there's some fine-tuning yet to be done, all indications suggest that this retelling of the beloved Don Quixote musical - with a powerhouse company headed by Brian Stokes Mitchell and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio - will be warmly welcomed when it opens in New York Dec. 5. British director Jonathan Kent has not attempted a wholesale re-envisioning.

Tony Award-winning actor Brian Stokes Mitchell performs two rituals whenever he begins a play in a new theater. He burns sage throughout the building to drive out evil spirits. And before the first performance, he gathers the cast on stage and shares the history of the theater. Observing rituals reinforces the actor's belief that his life has followed definite patterns. These patterns go all the way back to his birth, which happened to fall on Halloween, a holiday he believes is an ideal birthday for an actor.