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Victor de la Fuente, left, and Horacio Pena star in Gala Hispanic Theatre's The Old Man, The Youth, and The Sea or El Viejo, El Joven Y El Mar/Photo by Stan Weinstein
Who was Miguel de Unamuno?
If you, like me, are unaware of the Spanish poet, novelist, teacher, rebel, and a member of the "Generation of 1898," you'll want to get a ticket to the world premiere of The Old Man, The Youth and The Sea or El Viejo, El Joven Y El Mar now on stage at Gala Hispanic Theatre.
The scholar and sage bears some resemblance to Ernest Hemingway who receives "an homage" in the subtitle.
It is likely that Mr. Unamuno (1864-1936) and Mr. Hemingway (1899-1961) never met, but they shared a love of writing, of Spain (Mr. Unamuno's birthplace) and attitude towards war and its soul-searching after-effects.
In a Gala commissioning, playwright Irma Correa focuses on Mr. Unamuno's philosophies about existence and reason, in contrast to a youth's idealism.
The old man (Horacio Pena as Mr. Unamuno) and the young man (Victor de la Fuente) meet on the island of Fuerteventura in the Canaries where Mr. Unamuno has been confined because of political differences with the dictator Primo de Rivera.
Cisco, the young man, is assigned caretaking responsibilities for Mr. Unamuno who stays in one bedroom for the entire length of the play.
They
exchange pleasantries and ideas about life, their conversations which stand opposite stark plywood walls, floors,
and few pieces of furniture which permit no distraction from the dialogue.
The two discuss existence and meaning. Cisco dreams the impossible, that of capturing the largest whale in the
ocean which he calls "Moby Dick." He holds and moves a chair up and down as he crosses the room, back and forth, much like a great fish would do while threshing through waves.
Unamuno's wife, Concha (Luz Nicolás), briefly joins her husband to provide support. Soon, Unamuno's friend and writer, Dumay (Delbis Cardona) arrives, bringing an elaborate plot to escape, but Unamuno will have none of it!
Later, the general (Cardona in dual roles) puts the squeeze on any escape plans, but the dictator issues a pardon to Unamuno who rejects it. The prisoner continues making other escape plans and encourages Cisco to join him.
The two strive to hold fast to their own ideals and searches, but they clearly are affected by the other's beliefs.
The night I attended, the audience gave the actors and crew a standing ovation, proud to be part of a performance which recognizes the talents of another Spanish writer.
The director, José Luis Arellano, won the 2016 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Direction for Gala's Yerma which also received another Helen Hayes Award, for Outstanding Set Design by Silvia de Marta. For the Old Man, Ms. de Marta designed the set and costumes which perfectly match the suit Mr. Unamuno is wearing in the portrait below.
By Ramon Casas i Carbó - Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, ePublic Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org
The proximity of the sea enabled sound and lighting designer Jesus Diaz to capitalize on its nature to produce visualization of a cabin at the shore.
The
lighting is particularly effective as a single light from one side of the room casts a large shadow on the wall to create sharp black angles and
define a prison.
A Gala statement quotes Ms. Correa:
"It is time to revive Unamuno....[who] represents the power of reason and
empathy, and...Cisco, the dream of tomorrow, the drive of being
alive...the General defends the fulfillment of duty [and]...unbreakable
morality. He is Trump's wall."
Mr. Pena, a persuasive Unamuno, is "Argentina's leading stage film and television actor," says Gala. He and Mr. de la Fuente (from Madrid) are making their Gala debuts.
Others production team members are Iñaki Salvador, music composition; Elvira Zorita, video design; Alicia Tessari, properties; Catherine Nunez, stage manager; Devin Mahoney, technical director, Hugo Medrano, producer; Tony Koehler and David Peralto, production coordinators.
Presented in Spanish with English subtitles. To read subtitles comfortably, English-only guests should request seating in rows E through H.
What: The Old Man, The Youth and The Sea or El Viejo, El Joven Y El Mar by Irma Correa
When: Now through March 3, 2019, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m.
Where: Gala Theatre, 3333 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20010.
Tickets: $48, regular; $30 for seniors (65+), military, students, and those ages 30 and under; $25, group sales (10 or more) with additional discounts for groups of 10 and more. Go online and order at GALA Tickets.
Student Matinees: February 28 and March 1 at 10:30 a.m. For more information, email education@galatheatre.org.
Duration: A little over two hours with one intermission
Metro stations: Columbia Heights or McPherson Square and take a bus or the Circulator from McPherson Square up 14th, or walk two miles and save money while using calories! Lots of places to eat along the way.
Parking: Available nearby
For more information: Call (202) 234-7174 and/or email info@galatheatre.org
The
production was made possible with support from the DC
Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Embassy of Spain in
Washington, DC, SPAIN arts & culture, and Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) through its Programa de Internacionalización de la Cultura Española (PICE).
patricialesli@gmail.com
Tita (Ines Dominguez del Corral) looks on longingly as her sister, the bride (Guadalupe Campos) dances with Pedro (Peter Pereyra) in Gala Hispanic Theatre's Like Water for Chocolate/photo by Daniel Martinez
Take a family with three daughters, add
some weddings, several births and deaths, mix in laughter and sorrow,
ghosts, a tang of gunfire, roosters, barking dogs, dancing, love, sex,
lots of sex, and what do you have?
Como Agua Para Chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate) on stage now at Gala Hispanic Theatre, a delight of a show whose joys overcomes the heartaches, and it's the U.S. premiere.
The place and timing are in Mexico, about 100 years ago where two revolutions were underway, the national civil war, and one at a home of entrenched traditions where daughters did, more or less, what their mamas told them to do.
Every ingredient you want in a play is here and more to savor! Magnifico!
Director Olga Sánchez conducts a talented crew but none more able than Luz Nicolas, Mama Elena in the play, the hated, cruel, and vindictive wicked witch of this stage with hair severely pulled back to augment her sharp features. (Costumer Moyenda Kulemeka's simple and refined apparel keeps the mom in black, and the other actors in colorful garb, none which detracts from the script.)
Tita (Inez Dominguez del Corral) is Mama Elena's youngest daughter, imprisoned for life and sentenced to caring for her mother who ages in the finest of traditions.
He brought her flowers, starring Ines Dominguez del Corral as Tita in Gala Hispanic Theatre's Like Water for Chocolate/photo by Daniel Martinez
The man who waits for no one, Pedro (Peter Pereyra), and enjoys soon enough the "services" of two women, Tita and her older sister, Rosaura (Guadalupe Campos), marries Rosaura, so he can be "closer" to Tita whom Evil Mother has banned from love and happiness.
Crazy? Yes, like most families.
Meanwhile, the other sister, an energetic Gertrudis (Yaremis Felix) consumes a Tita magic potion dish (does the script come with recipes?) and "ignites," running off with a guerrilla warrior and his pals who eventually barnstorm the home with guns and hot takes.
The passion, which the now-always-beaming Gertrudis shares with her newly-found love, comes straight from the oven, enough to heat up the stage and the audience, too. (If this were in January, no heating elements would be necessary for anyone in the house. The "fight and intimacy director," Jonathan Ezra Rubin, adds a heaping side of relish to saucy and scalding scenes.)
Preparing consistently perfect chile en nogada is practically impossible, and this Chocolate has its weaknesses, particularly in the second act when the first act's successful time passage technique become tiresome.
Music (and sound) by David Crandall spice up Chocolate's menu with perfect timing for explosives, lights, and action.
Demands for frequent and varied lighting changes are amply satisfied under Christopher Annas-Lee's excellent guidance to add zest to the many scenes (ably designed by Mariana Fernandez). The centerpiece on the stage is the kitchen table which serves multiple purposes (including births). (Properties by Tony Koehler)
Windows with moving curtains double as frames for regularly-appearing ghosts with messages and enforce the notion of "magical realism." That's the genre here which is a contradictory term itself, but that defines this domicile of peachy walls and warmth, conflict, and fire.
Spoken in Spanish with English subtitles, but Chocolate's strong story soon eclipses reading subtitles which becomes unnecessary.
The play is based on the 1989 bestselling first novel by Laura Esquivel and adapted for the stage by Garbi Losada.
Adding more seasoning to the presentation are images in Gala's lobby of the Mexican Revolution from the collection of Dr. Barbara Tenebaum and James Kiernan.
Coming up September 23 after the 2 p.m. performance is a discussion with cookbook author, Chef Pati Jinich, the James Beard Award winner and host of the PBS Pati's Mexican Table series who is also the resident chef at the Mexican Cultural Institute.
Other members of the Chocolate cast are Carlos Castillo as Don Pascual; Delbis Cardona, Dr. John Brown; Karen Romero, narrator; and crowd favorites Teresa Yenque who is Nacha, and Karen Morales, Chencha.
The technical crew also includes Niomi Collard, projections; Catherine Nunez, stage manager; Devin Mahoney, technical director; and Heather McKay, English translator.
What: Como Agua Para Chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate)
When: Now through October 7, 2018, Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m.
Where: Gala Hispanic Theatre, 3333 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20010.
Tickets: $48 and $30 for seniors (65+), military, students, and those ages 30 and under, with additional discounts for groups of 10 and more. Go online to order: GALA Ticket Box
(To read subtitles comfortably, English-only guests should request seating in rows E through H.)
Duration: About 2. 5 hours with one 10 minute intermission.
Language and ages: Rated "G." Content is adult.
Metro stations: Columbia Heights or McPherson Square and take a bus or the Circulator from McPherson up 14th or walk two miles.
Parking: Available nearby. Ask about Gala's $4 flat rate.
For more information: Call (202) 234-7174 and/or email info@galatheatre.org
patricialesli@gmail.com
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