As an actor, it’s been my personal experience that several pieces have stuck with me for a long time. I think Kiss of the Spider Woman has been one of those stories where I’ve seen many different sides of the spectrum in terms of love, life, relationships, and self awareness.
I first became familiar with the story after seeing the 1985 film starring William Hurt and Raul Julia. Both of which are actors whom I admire a great deal for their versatile abilities. The film was indeed a favorite of mine and upon my discovery of the musical version, I was very intrigued at how the piece was lavishly reborn in musical form. Even before I had seen the show actually produced on stage, I was able to see the story colorfully brought to life in my mind through the musical album, as performed by its original stars, Chita Rivera, Brent Carver, and Anthony Crivello.
The story itself is a love story a lot like that of the classic French faerie tale, Beauty and the Beast, where we have Valentin, a man who seems trapped inside himself with a deeper and tenderer soul than Molina experiences in the beginning of their relationship. The two of them discover, not only the unseen beauty within each other, but even more so within themselves, which they eventually embrace and, in turn, grow closer together as men, friends, and lovers.
Valentin has faced a lot of hardship in his life, but I think what makes his character the most interesting is that his heart is more open than the story lets on to begin with. This is a quality that I feel a lot of male actors tend to discard when playing similar roles, such as Billy Bigelow in Carousel. Another role I’ve portrayed and have come to love for a great deal of the same reasons. These are men who are given the guises of bellowing, arrogant jerks who seem to find pleasure in grunting about as the “alpha leading man”, as it were. But these men, particularly Valentin, have so much heart and endearment to them that just cannot be ignored. And very well shouldn’t be, otherwise they’re very shallow men, to say the least.
I think Valentin’s passion for his political cause, as well as his personal relationships, give his story an inspirational turn that most people don’t expect at first. The music constantly stirs me emotionally and even in the darker numbers, there are glimmers of hope, which leaves me wondering where Valentine and Molina’s story will go from there.
I feel that this show is not only a beautiful piece, but a great artistic challenge that allows you to bring a great story to life. What these men learn about each other and themselves, I feel, will really open people’s eyes in many ways. This is definitely not a show for those that have trouble with open minded ideals or willingness of acceptance. So, perhaps we can tell a story that will open some eyes and leave people with broadened perspectives of ideals that may not always be easy to embrace, but will have a positive outcome in the end.
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