Don Quixote gets the 'crap' beat out of him. Two shows left.

Last Sunday we completed the first two of our four puppet shows of Don Quixote. Two more this Sunday and we are proud of the show. Interestingly, our audience has mostly been adults!

In our current high-tech society, where entertainment is fast and exhilarating, we have a typical puppet show where two puppeteers, not mechanics or special effects, maneuver the marionette puppets. Sure, we have two screens that shows video scenery to help the story along to the next scene, but the emphasis is the story.

The comical elements of this puppet show is how Don Quixote and Sancho Panza get beat up. Mostly, because Don Quixote has expectations that he should be treated like a real knight from a time gone by. His niece, an unseen character in the puppet play, is beside herself that Don Quixote goes out for ‘adventures.’ Sancho agrees to go with Don Quixote, but is he doing it because Don Quixote’s promised riches, or is he doing it because Don Quixote needs a companion to keep him out of trouble? Depending on what you learned at school (if this was a required read) you may know the reason for Sancho’s accompany him.

Heather Isaac and Chariti Messer bring these marionettes to life on a full stage. The voice of Jorge Romero for Don Quixote is charming. The voice of Jesse Ayers as Sancho Panza gives a fun quality. There’s 9-year-old Beau Godinho maneuvering a puppet. He’s elated with his first onstage experience.

We aim to give our community new experiences locally. We often see people with no experience in the arts gain so much in just walking in through our doors. As Heather recently said, “I found my tribe.” Marley once said to her mom about our theater group, “I found my people.”

The adults in the audience appreciate the opportunity to revisit Don Quixote. It’s a 17 hour read of the novel. This marionette production is less than an hour.

The show is pay-what-you-want tickets on our website. We also have cute bookmarks for sale for $1 in the lobby. The last two shows are this Sunday at 1pm or 5pm.

We hope you come and support our theater in the new space. We enjoy bringing a variety of shows to our community and giving our community members a place to try artistic things. Theater arts and creating is good for your health.

Tickets can be had on our website at www.HanfordMTC.com or at the door.