Capitol City Opera Company (CCOC) will endeavor to "dream the impossible dream" with Man of La Mancha, the Tony Award-winning musical based on Cervantes' epic 17th-century novel, Don Quixote on Friday, March 24 at 8 p.m., Saturday, March 25 at 8 p.m., and Sunday, March 26 at 3 p.m. at Conant Performing Arts Center at Oglethorpe University. Tickets are available online at CCITYOPERA.org.

Man of La Mancha was one of the first musicals to transform a piece of historical literature into a production for Broadway audiences. Winner of five Tony Awards, including "Best Musical," Man of La Mancha features such stirring songs as "It's All the Same," "Dulcinea," "I'm Only Thinking of Him," "Little Bird," and "The Impossible Dream."

Set in the context of the Spanish Inquisition, Man of La Mancha is presented as a play-within-a-play. Miguel de Cervantes, poet, playwright, and part-time actor, has been arrested, with his manservant, Sancho Panza, for staging a play that criticizes the Spanish Inquisition. Inside the huge dungeon, the other prisoners gang up on Cervantes, and begin a mock trial, with the intention of stealing or burning his possessions.

Together, they tell the story of the aged Alonso Quijana, who names himself Don Quixote, and begins an obsessive quest to attain an "impossible dream." Along the way, he defends his perfect lady, Dulcinea, and proves that an old man's belief can truly make him a knight.

True to its mission to provide Atlanta-area classically trained singers the opportunity perform on a professional level, Capitol City Opera's production features Jonathan Spuhler as Cervantes/Don Quixote, Daniel Weisman as Sancho, and Rachel Eve Holmes as Aldonza/Dulcinea, and a full cast of Atlanta-based performers. This production is directed by CCOC's Artistic Director Michael Nutter. Music Direction is by Catherine Giel. A five-piece chamber orchestra is conducted by Michael Giel.