Wednesday, November 27, 1996

THEATER:

Cervantes' 'Man of La Mancha' opens Tuesday in PasadenaBy Alicia Cheak

Daily Bruin Contributor

He'll be 63 this week, but he's still dreaming the impossible dream.

Actor Robert Goulet gained fame when he made his Broadway debut as Sir Lancelot in the 1960 original production of "Camelot." But like his newest character, Don Quixote, he hasn't stopped pursuing what he loves to do best.

"I don't believe I have achieved any dreams," Goulet says. "My job is to continue to grow and to try to do better whatever I am doing any time I am doing it. I'll never achieve the dream of perfection ­ no one does."

In the mean time, he's having a rollicking time with "Man of La Mancha," which opens Tuesday at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. He plays the not-quite-in-touch-with-reality lead in the musical adaptation of Cervantes' "Don Quixote."

"I get to lift my hair away from my face up in the air and onto the sides and I play something grander than life, which Don Quixote truly was," Goulet says. "He had dreams and aspirations but he was a little kooky in a couple of spots."

Goulet believes that Quixote's eccentric yet tragic nature gives him license to do something different. The character is full of the virtues of spirit and gallantry and yet what he's in search of is unrealistic and therefore absurd.

So far he has had more fun playing the flawed Quixote than the chivalrous Lancelot.

"I can let fly with a couple of things I would never have been able to do in other roles," he says.

Goulet has had a chance to play a whole range of different characters throughout the span of his career in productions such as "Carousel," "Kiss Me Kate," "The Fantastiks," "South Pacific," and most recently, "Moon Over Buffalo" with Lynn Redgrave.

"I just know that I am getting a few laughs and enjoying myself right now and that I have had more fun with (Quixote) than anyone else that I've played."

Goulet has only auditioned for one role in his life, that of Sir Lancelot, for which he received a Theater World Award. He's been incessantly offered the role as Don Quixote, but not until now did he decide to accept it.

"I've been turning it down for 25 years and I finally said I'll do it this time," he says.

"When I read the script I thought it was too dark but then I saw some humor in it and thought I'd give it a try".

"Man of La Mancha" opens in a dungeon where the Spanish Inquisition stages a mock trial as the inmates await the the verdict. Writer Miguel Cervantes (Goulet) is one of the political prisoners and as part of his defense, he assumes the role of his beloved character Don Quixote. It is the morbid opening scene which introduces the well-known adventures of an old man and his faithful companion, Sancho Panza, as they go in search of honor, fame and the elusive Dulcinea. Sadly, his gallant attempts are all unsuccessful and he gets hurt and beaten up repeatedly. But he keeps chasing those windmills.

And Goulet himself pushes on with a sense of humor despite the mental and physical challenges of the character and the production.

"It takes a lot of energy but I've always got tons of it," Goulet says. "I have a bad back and a problem with my hip and the stage is staged at 6.5 degrees and it creates a problem with pain but I've lived with pain before," he adds with his own Quixotic attitude of persevering through hard times.

The pain in Goulet's life has at times acted as an inspirational force in his career.

"My father died when I was 12 years old," he says. "On his death bed, he said, 'God gave you a voice; you must sing.' He died that night." Goulet took those words seriously and has made that voice famous. But he seems to share Don Quixote's view: The real goal is to keep dreaming, to keep pursuing, to keep moving forward.

"Man of La Mancha" will play Tuesday through Dec. 8 at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium. Tickets: $18 students, $22-$61 general admission. Information: (818) 564-2680.

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Robert Goulet (l.) stars as Don Quixote in "Man of La Mancha" with Darryl Ferrer as Sancho Panza. The play opens Tuesday in Pasadena.