Man of La Mancha (1998) In loving memory of Steve Wentz Dec. 1, 1960 - July 17, 2003       Call nothing thy own except thy soul. Love not what thou art, but only what thou may become. _____________
And I know if I'll only be true, to this glorious quest, That my heart will lie will lie peaceful and calm, when I'm laid to my rest ... And the world will be better for this: That one man, scorned and covered with scars, Still strove, with his last ounce of courage, To reach ... the unreachable star ...

                                       ihs 23 July 2003

 

Dale Wasserman, the author of Man of La Mancha, noted that he was inspired to bring a version of Cervantes' Don Quixote to the stage by the words of the existentialist philosopher Miguel de Unamuno, "Only he who attempts the absurd is capable of achieving the impossible." Unamuno (1864-1936), "the Sage of Salamanca," passionately believed that we are not fully human until we break out of the small world of self-absorption and enter the large world of commitment to something greater than ourselves, when we can say, along with Don Quixote, "I know who I am and what I can be" and have the courage to strike out into the unknown.  In so many ways, this musical expresses what we at USAO are all about.  Thank you, Roger Drummond, Jan Hanson, Steve Wentz, Aja Davis, Kirk Mace, and the other members of the staff and crew who made this production possible and reminded us "to dream the impossible dream"!  I.S.

   
 
 

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