STAGE REVIEW : Well-Performed ‘Man of La Mancha’ Needs Smaller Theater

He’s the right actor in the wrong theater. That’s Ken Howard in “Man of La Mancha” at Pasadena Civic Auditorium.

Howard successfully overturns any television-bred expectations of what he can do. When he enters as Cervantes, he’s about as diffident and unassuming as a big man could possibly be. This is someone who would truly prefer not to make waves--or challenge windmills. But he still looks like, well, Ken Howard.

Then Cervantes applies the make-up that transforms him into Don Quixote. And suddenly Howard appears to lose 30 pounds of weight, to gain 30 years of age, and then to make us forget about his age by infusing this courtly old gentleman with youthful spirit. You can see why any actor would want to test himself in this role.

Of course not every actor could sing it. Howard hasn’t sung much in Southern California, so it’s a relief to report that his voice is strong and satisfying, if not quite one for the ages.

As Aldonza/Dulcinea, former Fifth Dimension star Marilyn McCoo also sings with surprising range and strength. Her speaking voice occasionally sounds shrill or forced, but she moves with authority in her Southern California stage debut. The scene in which Aldonza is raped--in starkly stylized movement choreographed by Mary Bettini--is genuinely unsettling.

The supporting roles are generally well filled. Michael Tucci is the cute comic foil that one expects from Sancho Panza. Jack Ritschel makes a notably gentle innkeeper.

Gary Davis’ staging unfolds smoothly, assisted by Jeff Rizzo’s musical direction. What, then, is the problem?

It’s this: Pasadena Civic Auditorium is too big for this show. As Santa Susana Repertory Company revealed last summer in Simi Valley, “La Mancha” works best in much more intimate, grubbier surroundings. The show requires no vast scenic display; it takes place in a prison and then in one man’s imagination. At Pasadena Civic, as with so many California Music Theatre productions, it seems to be set in a museum.

From where I sat on opening night, there was at least no problem understanding the words--a considerable achievement here.

Be advised that this “La Mancha,” like the original, is performed without an intermission. It’s a long sit, but more bearable if you’re not anticipating a break. There isn’t much point to forgoing the intermission, but it presumably honors the intent of the show’s creators (composer Mitch Leigh, lyricist Joe Darion, author Dale Wasserman).

At one point on opening night, the audience’s attention was distracted by screams from the balcony. A CMT spokeswoman said the outburst was from an individual with a medical problem. The actors’ and musicians’ performances were not affected.

At 300 E. Green St., Pasadena, Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., through June 24. $15-$32.50; (818) 356-SHOW.