The MAN of LA MANCHA in VILNIUS

By Henning Hoholt

The Lithuanian National Drama Theatre in Vilnius has premiered the musical THE MAN OF LA MANCHA, by Dale Wasserman, Joe Darion and Mitch Leigh, in an interesting regi by the famous Lithuanian director and actor Adolfas Vecerkis.

Vecerkis has moved the history to a prison, where on of the prisoners are telling "a strange history" about The Man of La Mancha, and proposing that the prisoners shall try to play this musical together and for each other to make som change in the boring, and tuff, life in the prison. - Not all are interested, and non of them theatrically educated, but they deside to participate, and by that we are getting a very interesting and some time extremely funny performance out of it, with splendid music, well working scenographie by Andrius Zibikas, very good costumes by Zita Gustiene, god lighting, choreograpie by Loreta Juodkaite. And, asmentioned regi by Adolfas Vecerskis.

Adolfas Vecerskis has added one role to the history, as he was missing somebody "to entertain". This is the leader of the prisoners, splendid and very funny performed and plastically moved, and danced by the wonderful actor EVALDAS JARAS. It is long time since I last time has been laughing and crying at the same time.

In the titelrole we were very pleased to enjoy Audrius Rubezius, as we three days earlier has heard as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni at the Lithuanian National Opera. Honestly, he is even better as Don Quixote. First he is a handsome looking young gentleman, his voice is wonderful for musical, as he has all the great singing qualityes, and the musical media are missing good singing capacityes, who realy know how to use their voice, and to can act.. He is acting very well, and we trusted in him as Don Quixote. Algirdas Danavicius supported splendid as Sancho Panza.Inga Jankauskaite was great as Dulcinea, and we do understand that all the boys in the prison wanted to be friends with her.

Even that we didn't understand the Lithuanaian language, we understod all the performance, therefore we will too propose it to foreigners visiting Vilnius during the Culture City year 2009 and duringthe 100o Years City Jubilee, which will be headed June 6th by visit of Scandinavian Royalities.