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Getting Medieval
ACLOA Stages "Camelot" at Popejoy.
By Angie Drobnic
DECEMBER 29, 1997:
Camelot is everything most musicals try to be: The plot
is epic, the characters archetypes and the songs traditionally
pleasing. The story is the basic Arthurian tragedy: A love triangle
between King Arthur, Queen Guenevere (sic) and the Knight Lancelot
du Lac eventually explodes into war. But the genius of Camelot
is that the famous team of Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe
transformed the grandeur of this story into an intimate work that
focuses on human fallibility. And the Albuquerque Civic Light
Opera Association (ACLOA) uses the material to its best advantage,
putting on one of their best productions in many seasons.
Perhaps it is because of Camelot's familiarity that each
song--even jolly ones like "Take Me to the Fair" and
"What Do the Simple Folk Do?"--takes on slightly sad,
nostalgic tone. While Camelot's characters believe they
live in the best of all worlds, both the audience and the composers
know their paradise to be short-lived. A lot of nuance is needed
to bring this out, and fortunately ACLOA's stars have an abundance
of talent. Michael Finnegan as Arthur combines vulnerability and
strength in his performance, and his acting skills are the strongest
of the group. You actually feel his character growing wiser and
more aware throughout the musical. When Camelot is in chaos and
Arthur cries to Merlin to turn him into a hawk so he can escape,
the effect is heartbreaking. Erskine Maytorena as Lancelot plays
a character that's written to be an annoying goon and makes it
his own. Maytorena's delivery of the famous show-stopper "If
Ever I Should Leave You" is particularly strong, as is all
his singing (his cast biography tells us that he is classically
trained with extensive opera experience). But it was Laurie Daniels
as Guenevere who stole my heart: her voice as pure as a church
bell, Daniels shines every moment she is on stage.
The staging of the play is first rate, and the set design is charmingly
inventive. One of my slight criticisms of ACLOA's production is
the staging of Act I's first half, which seems a little uninspired;
the stage seems empty at times, and one is not prepared for the
great things that begin with the production number "The Lusty
Month of May." In the second act, things really start to
hum with the beautiful and shrewd design of Morgan Le Fey's Forest,
the Warming Fire where the knights gather and the climatic scene
in which Guenevere is to be burned at the stake.
The technical workers and the supporting actors deserve credit
for what they add to this fine production. Theatergoers, however,
should appreciate these details for themselves. Buy your tickets
for Camelot now; the word of mouth on this ACLOA production
is sure to be good.
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