The Worst Villain in History

Fuente Ovejuna has been cast and I play the evil Commander Guzmán! This will be new ground for me as I'm typically cast in the awkward lover roles. Both George Gibbs and Christy Mahon are shy, lovable characters; Guzmán couldn't be further from that type. His arrogant, corrupt, and dishonorable personality manifests in his abuse of power and in how he takes advantage of the humble village of Fuente Ovejuna. It's in his nature to disrupt the balance and turn order on its head just to entertain himself. I am really looking forward to stretching my abilities as an actor with the role of Commander Fernán Gómez de Guzmán; a true villain.

The Rakatá Theatre Company's production of Fuenteovejuna

The King Stag in Performance

Well, the performances came and went. Yesterday was our last performance of The King Stag and it was a bittersweet end. It all came together and all our hard work paid off. The show was magical, epic, fun, and colorful. We really created a wonderful fairytale world that our audiences believed and thoroughly enjoyed. Of our five performances, three were sold out, including a Sunday matinee! And since we promoted it as a kid's show there were usually a substantial number of children in the audience which only made performing more fun. The shrieks of delight when the big bear puppet comes out and the uncontrollable giggling at the slapstick of Smeraldina and Truffaldino only added to the performance.

One of the funniest scenes of the play was this scene between the comic Smeraldina, King Deramo, and his magical bust:

 

You can see the vibrant colors used in the set by our set designer, Dave Griffiths, and the amazing costume designs by senior Rachael Erichsen.

And then of course, there were the puppets. They became one of the most admired parts of the show. The puppets literally did wonders for The King Stag. Of course I might be biased, but the King Stag was pretty awesome. Even though I had to wear a unitard for the role I was proud to operate the King Stag.

 

Pretty cool, right? Well, it's all over now and so we look forward to the Tower Players' next production: Fuente Ovejuna. Auditions are tonight and tomorrow! We really don't waste any time, do we? More on Fuente soon!