Live this impossible dream! Rêver, l impossible rêve!

Sunday, 21 December — last day to go see Man of the Mancha at the Actors’ Playhouse. L’homme de La Mancha.

For two and a half months, I was debating whether or not to buy tickets, wanting to bring my kids, my husband, and my parents to see it with me.

It turned out we went last night — the very last night of the play.

How happy I am — encouraged by my mom — not to give up on a moment of culture.

Don Quixote represents so much for me.

And also for my dad — maybe indirectly — what led me to discover it in the first place.

It embodies so much of what I live and stand for:

the impossible dream — the one we should follow in order to live fully,

not giving up on what inhabits us.

It speaks to the position and fate of women who struggled in the past — and still struggle — to be seen, respected, and free.

The beauty of Don Quixote is that, in his madness, he allowed a woman who had no self-worth and no hope to believe she could become more — by giving her hope, dignity, and respect — allowing him, in turn, to keep dreaming until the end of his life.

It is deeply ironic, as I dread the Inquisition — I shiver when I think of the horror of that time — to realize tonight (I don’t know how I managed to block this important detail out of my mind) that Cervantes wrote this during the Inquisition.

One of the darkest periods in history.

A time of oppression, hatred of nonconformity, and lack of freedom.

A time when Jews — my/ our ancestors — were persecuted, and when all those who did not conform to the Queen’s wishes were targeted.

And yet, Cervantes found a way to defend the idea of dreaming of a better world, of imagining a better life, while darkness surrounded him.

A way to see — and defend — the best of humanity.

This animates my soul, my being.

The impossible dream is a way of life.

I feel deeply grateful to be living it — and to bring it forward through my art, the way I live, and the way I raise my family.

So if you are in Miami, head to the theater — the last show is at 3 pm today.

If not, or if you can’t, listen to the song, read the story, discover it — even on YouTube.

My favorite version of this musical, based on a novel written in the early 17th century, is the French one sung by Jacques Brel — a Belgian singer with a deep, powerful voice who brought so much poetry into his songs. Discover him as well if you can.

And in any case, allow yourself to dream — because the only true impossibility I see is denying ourselves that right.

Bon dimanche, with love and light,

Jessica 🤍aka Hopeje

P.S. The Spanish Inquisition was established earlier under the Catholic Monarchs, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand, with the approval of the Pope. When Cervantes wrote Don Quixote, Spain was ruled by King Philip III, and the Inquisition was still fully active, persecuting Jews and conversos, Moriscos, Protestants, and anyone seen as nonconforming in belief or thought. In a time shaped by censorship, fear, and repression, Cervantes still chose to defend imagination, dignity, and the right to dream — which makes his work all the more extraordinary.

P.P.S. A beautiful full-circle moment: tonight was also the opening show 30 years ago, when the Miracle Mile Theatre reopened — and Man of the Mancha was the very first production performed by Actors’ Playhouse. And seven years ago, I took my very first photograph in Coral Gables, right in front of the Miracle Mile Theatre — a photo that later won the People’s Choice Award and was a finalist in the Centennial Photography Exhibition at the Coral Gables Museum. Life has its own way of weaving stories together, quietly and meaningfully, when we pay attentio