Mambo Italiano (theatre review)
You may remember that I gave away tickets to Mambo Italiano a couple of weeks back. I attended opening night, but since it was so close to when my cousin had passed away, I wasn’t in any mood, shape or form to write about this play. But since the show has its last performance on April 30th, I thought I should post about it sooner rather than later.
Thirty-something Angelo Barberini, the oddball son of Italian immigrants living in Montreal, surprises his family by moving out on his own without getting married, and much to the shock of his conservative Catholic family, announces he is gay. Once out on his own, Angelo runs into his childhood friend Nino Paventi who is also gay and deeply in the closet. Angelo and Nino rekindle their friendship, start a romance and end up sharing an apartment. Together at home, they live in coupled bliss, but outside of the house they retain their separate straight acting lives. Angelo decided that he finally wants to announce their relationship, but this decision does not sit well with Nino who fears judgement from his family. Both families struggle to come to terms with their sons’ new lives, eventually planning a setup dinner in the desperate hope of “converting” their sons.
While each one of the cast members is good in and of their own, it’s the actor playing the main character (Joseph Galaccio in the role of Angelo) who carries the performance and steals the show. Demonstrating a candor and tenderness that is hard to rival, Angelo breaks down when he sees who he thinks is the love of his life yielding to family and societal pressures, breaking his heart and leaving him behind. Francisco Trujillo (Nino) also shows a side of an ambivalent closeted gay man that is hard to not forgive, despite breaking Angelo’s heart.
While it’s a funny comedy in some parts, it’s the whole play that demonstrates that, despite much of our progress in regards to gay rights, there’s still a lot to be accomplished. Notwithstanding this, I really enjoyed this show and you should check out Mambo Italiano, I strongly recommend it.
DATES: April 13 – 30 at 8pm, with 2pm Matinees Saturdays and Sundays and 1pm Pay What You Can Matinees Wednesday, April 20 and 27. You can get tickets here.
Disclosure: I had media tickets to attend the play, and I also received tickets for a giveaway for my readers. While I did not pay to attend this play, I would very gladly pay to attend a repeat performance, as it is a great production. This post hasn’t been paid for either. In any review I write or publish on my site, I retain editorial control at all times, and producers and publicists are well aware of this. Should you have any questions/concern feel free to contact me via e-mail through my contact form.
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