Tucson Weekly: Castillian Coup (April 9

'Fuente Ojevuna' Is A Rewarding Struggle.
By Mari Wadsworth
BORDERLANDS' LATEST PRODUCTION is a challenging bit of theatre. But then, the multicultural, nonprofit arts organization has never shied away from difficult themes during its 12-year tenure as a bastion of regional theater. Past productions such as Deporting the Divas and last year's ambitious 13 Días/13 Days have bolstered Borderlands' reputation for timely satire, strong politics and the courage to bring the minority voice--be it a cross-dressing Border Patrol agent or disenfranchised Mexican campesino--center stage.
Though Borderlands' aims have always been admirable, the final productions have sometimes labored under the constraints of limited resources. Divas, for example, was regrettably squeezed into PCC's tiny Black Box Theater; and its well-written script bogged down at times under a young cast of uneven abilities. And on the other end of the spectrum, the sprawling 13 Días endeavored to capture so many aspects of the violence in Chiapas, Mexico, both historical and metaphorical, it lost cohesion.
Review But with its mounting of Lope de Vega's Fuente Ovejuna, written in the early 1600s by one of the finest Spanish-language playwrights ever, Borderlands at last weds a fine script with superior production values and a near-flawless performance by its bilingual cast.
The play itself offers a rich historical glimpse pertinent to our border region, yet rarely seen in these parts: that of Spain, during its "golden age" of art and literature. So often in the American West, our images of Spain and its influence are limited to the atrocities and assimilations forced upon the Americas by the conquistadors.
What's interesting about Fuente Ovejuna is that it not only recreates in grand style the language and costume of the celebratory Siglo de Oro renaissance during which it was written, but it does so with a theme near and dear to our border-region pathos: that of the village rising up in solidarity against its oppressor.
The play is set in 1476, during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, and centers around the fictional village of Fuente Ovejuna, outside the Ciudad Real (which housed the royal court). Our first introduction to the villagers is through the banter and coquetry of its younger members, who whirl and dance and debate the subject of love in taunting and lyrical verse. These sections of the play are akin to watching Shakespeare in Spanish--the language is difficult to follow because it is, in fact, difficult.
As with many historical works, there's an archaic vocabulary and context that contemporary audiences will be hard-pressed to grasp without some scholarship, especially in an arena as unfamiliar in our education as Spanish classical theater. And for some, the castellano accent in which these lines are delivered may cause further confusion until the ear adjusts. But the actors deliver their lines with confidence and clarity, and the playbill's supplemental notes by director Barclay Goldsmith and consultant dramaturg Vern Williamsen, a retired professor of Hispanic Classical Theatre at the University of Missouri, are exceedingly helpful. Goldsmith notes that some of the cast members learned their lines phonetically, an effort for which they and their language coaches, Angelica Santini and Rebeca Cartes, are to be congratulated.
The idyllic setting of the rural village, with its unquestioned daily toil and divisions between the sexes and generations, is interrupted when the liberty-taking Commandante (played in English by Clark Andreas Ray and in Spanish by Leonardo Rodriguez) arrives with his soldiers to impose what amounts to martial law, even though the country is thriving in peacetime.
The ensuing power struggle, the flashpoint of which is the wedding between young lovers Laurencia (enchantingly played by Nuria Morgado) and Frondoso (Martin Chandler), questions the role and even definition of love, honor and loyalty--themes which characterized much of the Siglo de Oro works, but which are nonetheless timeless. Williamsen writes of the triangular conflict, "The honor of the royal court conflicts with that of one of its feudal lords at the same time that the honor due him as a member of his social class is called into question by his dishonorable actions as a human being."
...And it's all told in poetic dialogue, verse and meter, with a lovely original score composed by Bruce Barthol which includes Celtic-tinged instrumentals, and songs with Flamenco vocal stylings. The music falls in seamlessly with the story, creating a natural bridge between language and action, guided by gentle choreography by Eva Tessler.
It's really a shame last Saturday's opening night performance in Spanish was so sparsely attended. Due to popular sentiment, one of this weekend's performances has been changed from Spanish to English.
Though admittedly intimidating, it's a play meant for its native tongue. Given the rigor applied to the Spanish production, we're confident equal care was given to its English translation by Victor Dixon. But the beauty of this language, which is not a spoken-Spanish, is not translatable. One might approach it the same way a non-native might listen to an Italian opera: The lyricism and emotion tell the story, even if you don't understand the words. Those interested in the Spanish language, either as native speakers or students, owe it to themselves to take advantage of this rare opportunity.
Made to travel, the production (debuted at the 23rd International Siglo de Oro Festival in El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico, last month) has a subdued elegance: An earthy landscape backdrop has the feel of a classic painting, handheld props dress-up, without detracting from, the spare, stone-colored set, and lighting designer Don Evans has created an illusory stained-glass window for the royal palace, and a cold, dappled moonlight through an imaginary forest for the village. Also noteworthy are the lavish royal costumes designed by Linda Longhofer.
Along with the spacious Proscenium's own star-studded curtain, the overall effect is one exceptional night at the theatre, both challenging and magical.

Fuente Ovejuna, a Borderlands Theater production, continues through April 11 in the PCC Proscenium Theater, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Thursday's performance will be in Spanish; English performances are at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets range from $6 to $12, available in advance at Antigone Books, the Borderlands Theater Office, Yoly's Music Shop, and the PCC West Campus cashier. Call 882-7406 for reservations and information.

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