Review: Amphibian’s ‘Juan Garcia’ brings comical joy through a hot mess of characters

Originally published on Dallas Voice

Today, Amphibian Stage announced the appointment of Elizabeth Kensek as Managing Director, effective Jan. 1. Kensek will begin transitioning into her role during the run of The Amazing, Fabulous, and Spectacular Untruths of Juan Garcia. She last served at WaterTower Theater and her appointment here comes as the organization bids farewell to its founding Artistic Director, Kathleen Culebro, who will step down at the end of this year after 25 years of leadership.

Juan Garcia was written by Culebro which premiered last week at the Fort Worth theater — and what a way to close her tenure. Based on the story La Verdad Sospechosa by Juan Ruis de Alarcon, Culebro’s comedy was a romp of ridiculous fun and farce set in Oaxaca. Directed by Evan Michael Woods, Juan Garcia was also a winning combination of style and talent.

The story centers on Juan Garcia who returns to his home and to father Don Beltran from university where he boasts his big dreams, but also finds himself in a convoluted web of mistruths that he started because he’s kind of a compulsive liar. He’s drawn to Jacinta, but perhaps it was Lucrecia. He drags his father’s employee Consuelo into his foibles while Consuelo has to juggle all the duties of the other employees who are no longer there but Beltran doesn’t notice. Fernando, who loves Jacinta, challenges Juan to a duel. Jacinta and friend Lucrecia conspire to trick Juan. And Don Beltran doesn’t know what to do with his fashion-forward, well-educated son who can’t compare to his favorite son who has died but who also is going broke.

Juan Garcia was written by Culebro which premiered last week at the Fort Worth theater — and what a way to close her tenure. Based on the story La Verdad Sospechosa by Juan Ruis de Alarcon, Culebro’s comedy was a romp of ridiculous fun and farce set in Oaxaca. Directed by Evan Michael Woods, Juan Garcia was also a winning combination of style and talent.

These pieces came together to result in a marvelous complete puzzle of a play. The story conveyed so much action and several layers of narrative, but Woods’ direction and Culebro’s story painted a clear picture of what was always happening. The cast understood the camp and comedic elements that ranged from subtle nuance to flat out comic pageantry.

Much of the cast made their Amphibian debut including the title character actor Danny Quintero who succeeded in making a strong impression. Surrounded by incredible talent, Quintero ably carried the show without ever losing sight of his character’s strengths. His dandy performance was solid and well thought out. His ability to deliver humor from either grand displays to comic minutiae was remarkable to watch. Juan Garcia should be easily disliked, but Quintero’s charm kept him loveable and had us rooting for him still.

As the slightly clueless patriarch, David Lugo’s portrayal as Beltran was the counter to Quintero’s showy performance. Lugo’s dry delivery was always gold. As Dona Susana, Gigi Cervantes served some strong tia energy. Under the guise of caring for her niece Jacinta, Susana looked out for herself first and Cervantes weaved that duality effortlessly. Gloria Benavides was a trail mix of laughs because her character had to do everything in servitude to both Beltran and Juan Garcia. She did it all with fabulous flair making Consuelo a mix of messy, rebellious and horny vibes.

Amber Flores and Amanda Reyes were in top form as the women of interest. Although set in the 1700s, both actors had the freedom of giving their characters agency so while Flores’ Jacinta was juggling two men, it never felt like she needed either. Flores’ portrayal was lovely and fairly restrained which balanced the zaniness around her. As Lucrecia, Amana Reyes was similar but also with a distinct edge to not mess with her character. Jovana Caamano’s Fernando, the jealous lover of Jacinta, made a big impression. Fernando wasn’t happy with Juan Garcia, but also wasn’t the toughest guy to follow through. Caamano captured that mix of misguided machismo to hilarious effect.

The cast also included Bethany Mejorado as Isabel with eyes on Consuelo, Danny Lovelle as Diego who had eyes on Isabel with Samantha Padilla as Juan Garcia’s optimistic professor and vendor and Rudy Lopez and Carrie Viera as vendors all after Juan Garcia who cheated them out of their money.

Techinically, Juan Garcia was a stunner of a production. Scenic designer Paige Hathaway’s set was gorgeous with its Mexican tiled (painted) floor and two-level backdrop of windows and doors. The neon outlines against the old Mexican look was a cool juxtaposition and the color palette was rich and vibrant. Lighting and sound by Leann Burns and Claudia Jenkins-Martinez completed the set with lights enhancing both the colors of the set and costumes and the sound design that added in layers to the onstage action.

Laura Anderson Barbata’s costumes were jaw-dropping. Ornate and styled to perfection, each character’s identity immediately came through Barbata’s designs. Quintero perhaps had the most to benefit from Barbata’s designs as Juan Garcia pranced in fabulous  couture the character designed himself. But her meticulous detail to every piece of clothing onstage was simply stunning to watch parade throughout the show.

Can a show also be a showstopper because that came to mind at the end of The Amazing, Fabulous, and Spectacular Untruths of Juan Garcia. Visually, Amphibian created this colorful dreamworld but then matched it with an outlandish but gratifying story of culture and family and romance centered on this dang guy who can fib his way through (most) anything.

The show runs through Nov. 3.