Go ahead & Pick the unreachable star

5And a knight with his banners all bravely unfurled

Now hurls down his gauntlet to thee

I am I, Don Quixote, the Lord of La Mancha

 My destiny calls and I go”

——Man of La Mancha

With the sunlight penetrating through layers of green leaves and scattering throughout the campus, students from the International Division gathered at the school gate with high expectations and they were about to depart for the ShangYin Opera House and watch the famous and classic Broadway musical “Man of La Mancha” in Chinese version on September 27th.

When arriving at the ShangYin Opera House, students lined up and entered the House in an orderly manner, and quietly waited in their seats for the opening of the performance. With lights gradually dimmed and curtains slowly opened, a visual and auditory feast officially began.

The musical “Man of La Mancha” was adapted from the novel of the same name by Spanish literary giant Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, telling a story about ideals and reality, falsehood and persistence. The protagonist Don Quijote in the play is both a fictional character in Cervantes’ novel and a projection of his own spiritual world. This clever structure of “play-within-a-play” allows the stage to display a unique dual space, invisibly forming a dialogue between realism and idealism.  When dreams are out of reach, can we still pursue them without hesitation?

At the beginning of the play, Cervantes and his servant were robbed of all their belongings, including his novel manuscript by prisoners in prison. In order to protect his work that was full of painstaking efforts, Cervantes proposed to defend himself by performing the play and invited prisoners to join him in the story of Don Quijote.

When he first appeared on stage, Don Quijote was a stereotypical and outdated the knight image, as he was obsessed with the traditional knight’s mission of rescuing a princess from a high wall and returning triumphantly. He regarded the inns in the countryside as castles and the maids as princesses, exhibiting absurd and ridiculous behavior that was pitiable.

However, as the plot developed, the audience gradually realized the pure idealism deep within Don Quijote’s heart. In the adventurous and fantastical journey, he attempted to transform reality with standards of his ideals. Although he felt repeatedly frustrated and rebuffed, he remained steadfast in his belief that goodness would eventually triumph over evil, and virtue would ultimately influence people in the heart.

Facing numerous challenges in the real world, one must persistently pursue the ideal world that “should” be. Don Quijote is no longer just a character in literature, but also a symbol representing people’s passionate pursuit of dignity and ideals. Although his behavior seemed absurd and was not accepted by the secular world, his spirit has remained enduring and deeply moved the audience.

The opposition between the female protagonist Aldonza and Don Quijote constituted another important plot clue. Don Quijote stubbornly regarded her as a pure and noble princess – Dulcinea, while Aldonza knew deeply that she was at the bottom of society and was not respected by others. However, Don Quijote’s attitude towards her made her question her self-awareness and consider the possibility of breaking free from social labels and seeking higher life values.

Aldonza’s transformation demonstrates the inner conflict of a realist when encountering idealism, and the pursuit of chivalry when struggling in adversity. The character images of Don Quijote and Aldonza embody the romanticism of idealism and the cruelty of realism. The tension and interweaving between the two consciousnesses invisibly illuminates the human nature, that is, to pursue beauty, nobility, and pure qualities.

The curtain was lifted, bringing a satisfactory conclusion to the performance. The event not only allowed students to enjoy high-quality musical performances, but also gave them a spiritual and artistic baptism in the busy school life, because it taught them how to face challenges and difficulties in life, and they gained a deeper understanding of how to find a balance between reality and ideals. Although dreams may be out of reach, the meaning of life is realized when they bravely choose to challenge them.