By Eric George Tauber
SAN DIEGO — As kids watching Schoolhouse Rock, we heard the song “Elbow Room” describing America’s great push west ‘from sea to shining sea.’ According to New York editor John L. O’Sullivan, it was “our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence …” Nevermind the multitudes of people who faced displacement and near extinction –circumstances with which our readers can certainly sympathize.
Ever the political satirist, Herb Siguenza has taken Moliere’s “Imaginary Invalid” and set it in Alta California, right at the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848. Moliere was greatly influenced by Commedia del’Arte, a kind of low-brow street theatre from Italy with stock characters and campy acting punctuated by shtick and slapstick comedy. The humor is often ribald with biting satire. Siguenza’s Commedia Californio fully embraces this tradition while adapting it to Californio culture.
Don Aragon is a wealthy ranchero and hypochondriac. His doctor fleeces him for every prescription, diagnosing him with “Manifest Destinitis.” His anxiety about the future is a Tourette-like Syndrome, causing him to randomly blurt out such expletives as “Burger King” and “Juicy Fruit,” prescient phrases fortelling things to come.
Don Aragon wants to marry off his daughter Angelica to Tomás, a young doctor. As a devout hypochondriac, it would be handy to have a doctor in the family. But this schlemiel is a less than impressive specimen of a man. And of course, Angelica is hopelessly enamored of Charlie, a white actor. His second wife, Belen, is giving him horns with their lawyer and circling his fortune like a vulture. So it’s up to Tonia, their native housekeeper, to save the day.
Hats off to Sean Fanning for a great scenic design, an authentic-looking front room of an Alta California ranch house with lots of doors for quick entrances and exits.
Jennifer Paredes is lovely and charming as both daughters, the feminine princess, Angelica and her tomboy, firebrand sister Luisa, making for some pretty frantic quick-changes. Angelica is all about love and lovely gowns. The cross-dressing Luisa is leading a revolución feminista from her underground poetry readings. If anything, I would like to have seen more made of that.
Jacob Caltrider plays Charlie as a baked, valley-boy surfer dude inserting “like” in random places. Salomon Maya is fun to watch as he plays the young doctor Tomás with cartoonish physicality like a three-dimensional Looney Toon.
Mark Pinter plays Don Aragon with great fervor, a man determined to have everything go his way if only everyone else would get on board with his wisdom. Roxanne Carrasco, as always, displays her passion as a woman too strong and fiery to be contained by any man.
John Padilla brings the house down as he bemoans the changing times, decrying their need to “make Mexico great again” by building a “great adobe wall” to hold back the flood of “illegals” from Los Estados Unidos.
Herb Siguenza plays Tonia with a Monty Python kind of drag. Clad in a wig, dress and 5 o’clock shadow, he’s not a pretty picture, but he is a hoot. As a native, Tonia doesn’t much care who wins the war because she knows that whichever way it goes, her people will get screwed.
Manifest Destinitisis an evening of laughter with biting satire. It’s a poignant reminder that our California dream did not come without cost and many have paid a heavy price.
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Tauber is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. He may be contacted via eric.tauber@sdjewishworld.com. Comments intended for publication in the space below MUST be accompanied by the letter writer’s first and last name and by his/ her city and state of residence (city and country for those outside the United States.)