Cuban leader Fidel Castro, whose 736-page autobiography -- Fidel Castro: My Life -- was released in the United States in January, lauds author Miguel de Cervantes in the book and states that his favorite character is none other than Don Quixote.

Indeed, it seems that Castro -- born Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, the son of a prosperous Spanish immigrant and the servant he had taken as a mistress -- fancies himself a Quixotesque figure.

Although in ill health and no where near achieving the 'dream' of his 1959 revolution, Castro shows no signs of flagging in his belief that he will ultimately prevail -- even if only from the grave.  "Our enemies should not delude themselves; I die tomorrow and my influence may actually increase," the dictator writes.  "I may be carried around like El Cid -- even after he was dead his men carried him around on his horse, winning battles."

The book is coauthored by Ignacio Ramonet and is published in the U.S. by Scribner.
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Stephen Marlowe, author of 'The Death and Life of Miguel de Cervantes', has died following a prolonged illness.  He was 79.

In the 1996 novel, Marlowe had Cervantes, himself, serve as narrator.  Library Journal wrote of the book:  "Working in the Spanish tradition of the picaresque novel, Marlowe follows Cervantes from urchin to schoolmaster to soldier to man of letters who encounters the two great contemporaries who were his equal: Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe."

Stephen Marlowe wrote more than 50 novels, primarily pulp and science fiction.  His most famous character, private detective Chester Drum, made his debut in 1955's The Second Longest Night, according to the Associated Press.  Marlowe was the recipient of France's Prix Gutenberg du Livre (1988).  He also was honored with a Life Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America in 1997.

He is survived by his wife, Ann, and two daughters, the AP reported.<< MORE >>

Matt Snider, reviewing the local production of Man of La Mancha for the Cleburne Times-Review in Texas, calls the production "just terrific."

The play, which runs through March 16, is presented by the Greater Cleburne Carnegie Players and is its first production of the 2008 season.

Snider says that Hillard Cochran, who stars in the lead role of Don Quixote, "does a superb job."  "The role is demanding in terms of acting and singing, and despite not felling 100 percent at showtime, Cochran gave a dramatic, powerful, near-perfect performance, remind me of the one I saw by Richad Kiley, the actor who originated the role during the 1960s off and on Broadway," Snider wrote.

Snider, in fact, has high praise for pretty much everyone involved in the production, including behind-the-scenes folks.  "In fact, I have not seen a better performance of Man of La Mancha in community theater - ever - and I've seen a lot of them," he writes.<< MORE >>

A new adaptation of Don Quixote will be receive its world premiere this summer at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF).  The adaptation is from playwright Octavio Solis and will be supervised by the festival's new artistic director, Bill Rauch.

Laird Williamson, an OSF veteran, will direct the performance.

Founded in 1935, the OSF is one of the largest professional non-profit theaters in the United States.  The festival is headquartered in Ashland, located in the Southern part of the state.  << MORE >>

If Miguel de Cervantes had been a woman, what kind of book might he have written?  Would he, …um she, still have told the tale of a knight-errant and his loyal squire?  Or might she have written of a more feminine impossible dream?

Maddie Hunt has leukemia and her prospects are ‘dismal.’  Rather than be crushed by the diagnosis and the tortuous effort to beat the cancer into remission, Maddie continues to be the fighter and the idealist.

Her sister, Olivia, has pretty much everything that the cancer has taken from Maddie, except for that quixotic attitude toward life and the love of a rock-solid, faithful husband, Bobby.

Olivia is a single.  She loves Michael, but their careers supersede their romance.  Olivia’s career, these days, consists primarily of trying to make a fresh version of Don Quixote, starring John Cleese as Quixote and Robin Williams as Sancho.

When Olivia loses hope, it is her sister, Maddie, who pushes her to continue chasing windmills.

The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sister is the first novel by Elisabeth Robinson, whose real life tracks awfully close to the fictional Olivia.  Robinson served as an associate producer on Braveheart (1995) and a producer of 2001’s Last Orders, starring Michael Caine, Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren.

The real life sister of Robinson, Laurie, died of leukemia in 1998.  In a 2004 interview with New York magazine, Robinson explained:  “Writing was always how I worked things out.  My intention [with Adventures of the Hunt Sisters] was to come to terms with the way she lived and died – which was with the kind of idealism and optimism I never had.”

Which makes one wonder.  Did Cervantes imbue Don Quixote with the kind of outlook that he himself had?  Or, like Elisabeth Robinson, was Cervantes trying to come to grips with the life of another who he knew and admired?

The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters was published in 2004 by Little, Brown and Company.  To date, Robinson has not published a novel or produced a film since.

Perhaps, the first book was enough.

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By Phyllis Cannon

It's joyous, festive and visionary!  Those are just some of the reasons Roosevelt University is thrilled to have the Georgian Ballet perform "Don Quixote" in the University's Auditorium Theatre in Chicago on March 5 through March 9, 2008.  It's an important stop on the Georgian Ballet's first ever tour of the United States.

Under the directorship of Nina Ananiashvili, the former prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet and American Ballet Theatre, "Don Quixote" has become the company's signature ballet.  Ms. Ananiashvili appears in the dual role of Kitri, a vivacious, strong-minded village girl, and Dulcinea, Don Quixote's idealized love interest.

Cervantes' masterpiece was first adapted for the ballet as far back as 1740.  A loose retelling of just a few sections of the 17th century novel, "Don Quixote" is one of the rare classical ballets to have a truly democratic spirit.  The vivid Spanish dances, brimming with spectacular virtuoso turns, celebrate the heroes of the people.  Dancers perform with a sweeping vitality that demonstrates the art of storytelling in movement.  It's a fearless ballet, brimming with exotic flavor.

What's the appeal of this classic work now, in 2008? "It's the story line," says Elizabeth Butler, sales manager of the Auditorium Theater.  "It's the tale of someone who follows his own vision and makes it real.  That's what sold the play 'Man of La Mancha'.  It just appeals to everyone".

Ms. Butler thinks the attractiveness of the "Don Quixote" ballet has only grown stronger with the increasing importance of the Spanish language and culture in our world today.  The adaptation resonates with Spanish spirit.  Ms. Butler says this ballet, inspired by a character who dared to dream and persevered against all obstacles, "has such fire and sparkle and shows such personal magnetism and power.  It makes audiences feel good to be inspired all over again".

Call 312.902.1500, visit ticketmaster.com, or come to the Auditorium Theatre box office for tickets.  Groups (10+) call 312.431.2357.  For more details, visit the Auditorium Theater web site.


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I want to thank the Academy and I also want to thank my junior high guidance counselor for a meeting we had where he asked me, "What do you want to do with your life?" And I said, "I want to make movies." And he said, "What else do you want to do with your life?" And I said, "Make movies," and he said, "What if you couldn't make movies," and I said, "I'd find a way that I could." 

"What if movies didn't exist?" 

"I'd have to invent them." And it went on like this until we were sick of each other and i only realized just recently that he gave me the perfect training for the movie business." 

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"Take notice, Sancho," said Don Quixote, "that, wherever virtue exists in any eminent degree, it is always persecuted.  Few, or none, of the famous men of antiquity escaped the calumny of their malicious contemporaries."






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Howard Mancing, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Purdue University. He is the author of The Cervantes Encyclopedia (Greenwood Publishing - 2003) and Cervantes' Don Quixote: A Reference Guide (Greenwood - 2006)

He was interviewed in Lafayette, Indiana in February 2008.
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Grupo de Teatro Vida, a Spanish language performance group, performed The Cave of Salamanca (La Cueva de Salamanca) during a three-day run this month at the John Waldron Arts Center in Bloomington, Indiana.

IDSnews.com reports that prior to each performance, the director came out and explained the play in English, so those who didn't speak Spanish could follow along.  The troupe also presented two other short Spanish-language plays at each performance.

In the Cave, Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, tells the story of a woman, Leonarda, and her maid, Cristina, who plan to unite with their lovers while Leonarda's husband is out of town, IDSnews writes.  "A young student then sought shelter at their house and agreed to keep the ladies' affairs secret.  When Leonarda's husband unexpectedly returned, the student saved the day with his tale of magic from the Cave of Salamanca."

The IDSNews.com reviewer, Lara Streyle, called the performance of the Cave "humorous and entertaining."<< MORE >>