‘Disenchanted’ enchanting
Huntington Theatre Company’s ‘Boleros’ hits all the right notes
REVIEW. Boleros are essentially love songs brimming with passion and driven by melodic lyrics that sing the praises of romance. In “Boleros for the Disenchanted,” playwright José Rivera has penned a charming, heartfelt ode to true love that could easily be called a theatrical bolero.
In the hands of the Huntington Theatre Company, Rivera’s love song completely embodies the essence of the bolero in an enchanting production that sizzles with passion, romance and a happy ending that is steeped in reality rather than artistic imaginings.
It’s 1950s Puerto Rico and Monica Raymund’s Flora seems to be living the dream life. She’s a beautiful young woman engaged to Manuelo, (Juan Javier Cardenas) the sexiest young man in town. After hearing Manuelo explain why he’s been having sex with other women rather than waiting for marriage, Flora dumps him and quickly flees to the big city for a visit with her cousin.
Soon after meeting Eusebio (Elliot Villar), Flora finds herself making life-altering decisions that include marriage and abandoning life on the “Enchanted Island” for a shot at the American dream.
Act II opens nearly 40 years later when Flora and Eusebio are living the fallout from their dream in an apartment in Alabama. And though it may seem schmaltzy, the love that sustains the couple throughout their failed dreams and designs is what makes this story so magical and yet so real.
The impeccably cast ensemble and stellar production values all contribute to that far-too-rare yet delightful experience of being entirely lost in the moment. Who cares to comment on execution, direction or underlying meaning when your heart is being tugged so completely that you wouldn’t notice a flaw if there was one?
All of the actors must have hit all of their cues and all of the craftsmen must have nailed the delivery of director Chay Yew’s vision because of all the pieces seem to have fallen so nicely into place that there’s nothing to do but sit back, relax and enjoy this journey.
‘Boleros for the Disenchanted’
Through Nov. 15
Calderwood Pavilion
527 Tremont St., Boston
MBTA: Orange Line to Back Bay
$20-$60, 617 266-0800
www.huntingtontheatre.org