About the work
Man of La Mancha is a musical by Mitch Leigh (music), Joe Darion (lyrics), and Dale Wasserman (book), premiered on Broadway in 1965. Loosely inspired by Miguel de Cervantes's novel Don Quixote, it won five Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
Plot
The poet and tax collector Miguel de Cervantes is thrown into prison during the Inquisition. To save his manuscript from his fellow inmates, he defends himself through a role-play: he transforms into the old country gentleman Alonso Quijano, who believes himself to be the knight-errant Don Quixote. With his squire Sancho Panza he sets out, tilts at windmills, and worships the kitchen maid Aldonza as the noble lady "Dulcinea." His unwavering idealism gradually transforms the cynical Aldonza, and even as he dies Quixote holds fast to his impossible dream.
Cultural significance
The heart of the musical, the anthem The Impossible Dream (The Quest), became one of the most frequently sung numbers in American musical theatre and a universal emblem of idealistic striving. The work ran for more than 2,300 performances on Broadway and saw numerous international productions and revivals. Its nesting of play-within-a-play and its faith in the power of illusion against a cruel reality make it one of the genre's most unusual worldwide successes.