9 Works: Review of LIWANAG SA DILIM: Twisting and Turning in Time

March 30, 2025

In 2025, young NGO worker Elesi (Khalil Ramos) became an orphan again. His adoptive parents passed away within a year of each other. Elesi received two things which he had with him when he was adopted. One was a necklace with a distinct pendant. The other was a handheld spinning toy. Elesi soon realized that he can actually travel back and forth in time      whenever he would press the green button on this toy. 

In one of his trips back in history, Elesi found himself in the 1880s in Manila. He met Cris (Vien King), a gentleman who just came home from studying in Europe. For more ease, Cris and his fiancee Clara (Alexa Ilacad) called Elesi as Elias. Cris was busy building a school in his community, while seeking justice from a powerful person who had disrespected his father. One day, a bad accident at the construction of Cris's school put all his plans in jeopardy.

This new production staged by 9 Works Theatricals is another jukebox musical, this time using the songs written by Rico Blanco for himself and for his previous band, Rivermaya.  As you can probably surmise from the synopsis above, the book written by director Robbie Guevara was based on a certain famous Philippine novel, at least the first act. However, on the second act that Guevara totally went off page to whip up new surprises for all the characters.

Musical director Daniel Bartolome had the meticulous task of picking which Rico Blanco songs and which parts of these songs to stitch into the book to move the story forward. "Hinahanap-hanap Kita" and "Umaaraw, Umuulan" were recurrent themes. "Kisapmata" was a heartbreaking moment for a neglected lover. "Himala" was an answered prayer for a distressed mother. "Balisong" became a gothic incantation of lust by a creep. 

The cast acknowledges the live band above them.

Now 1-1/2 years after his theater debut in "Tick Tick Boom!" also with 9 Works, Khalil Ramos still stunned his audiences with his acting skills, as well as his singing range as he belted out his difficult songs. Elesi's name was obviously chosen because of the song with the same title. However, the part how the song was integrated in the story was very well-written. Ramos' rendition of "Elesi," "Ulan," "241" and especially "214" were memorably emotional, as his "Your Universe" and "You'll Be Safe Here" were romantic. (Anthony Rosaldo alternates as Elesi.)

Vien King struck a noble stance and strong tenor vocals as hot-headed heroic figure, Cris. He gets to lead the singing of patriotic songs, "Isang Bandila," Panahon Na Naman," "Yugto," "Posible," "Alab ng Puso," and the title song "Liwanag sa Dilim." Like her Julia in "Walang Aray," Alexa Ilacad's Clara, delightful in her fast pick up of Gen Z English slang, was hopelessly in love with her man, but she also aspired for agency for women like her.  (CJ Novato and Nicole Omillo alternate as Cris and Clara.)

Arnel Carrion, with his height and classic Hispanic visage, looked perfect to play the most reviled villain in Philippine literature. However, the only solo he got to sing was "Chismis," in a comedic number that felt forced in. On the other hand, Boo Gabunada and his huge curly pigtails, played the sleazy shadowy second villain to the hilt. For "Faithless," he was given a full production number bathed in eerie red light, with a chorus of evil nuns behind him. 

Neomi Gonzales played Nanay, a woman whose husband was a useless drunkard and gambler. She thought the safest place for her two young sons (Prince Espana and Elian Santos) was at the church as altar servers. However, she suffered overwhelming misfortune and abuse that drove her mad. Unlike her past roles, Gonzales had no comic relief at all in this tragic role. She cannot even afford to smile. (Rita Daniela alternates as Nanay. Clave Sun and Gian Sarita alternate as her sons.) 

The rest of the cast include Jon Abella, Raul Montesa, Rica Laguardia, Lani Ligot, and Jasper John Jimenez, Brianna Bunagan, Iya Villanueva, Lucylle Tan and Denzel Chang. The male swings are Paji Arceo and Mark Tayag. The female swings are Chez Cuenca and Fay Castro.

The scenography of Mio Infante was one of the most stunning aspects of this show. The time-travel theme required backdrop quick-changes which were executed well with the actors, as Elesi went from high-rise condominium to the balcony of Clara's house to the inner sanctum of a convent (even to a close encounter with a T-rex) with a mere click of a button. The live band played on an elevated platform above the main stage, obscured by a translucent screen.

This show was certainly an ambitious undertaking by 9 Works Theatricals. The running time of 2 hours and 45 minutes is formidable, in spite of the 15 minute intermission. Perhaps the script could use some streamlining for future stagings, especially for Act 1 since its events are already familiar to most viewers. Appreciation of the parody aspects of Act 2 may depend on the sensitivities of the viewers, since it subverts a supposedly virtuous martyr character. I did like the way that the ending set up for a possible sequel, perhaps with music of another band.

The Cast at the Curtain Call 

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"Liwanag sa Dilim: The Musical" was originally running from March 7 up to April 13, 2025 only,  at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati. However, it has been announced that its run will be extended to resume after Holy Week for two more weekends, continuing up to May 3, 2025. 

Ticket prices range from P3900 (Orchestra Center Premium), P3,700 (Orchestra Center, Loge Center), P3,500 (Orchestra Center Front), P3,600 (Orchestra Side), P3,400 (Orchestra Side Zone 2, Loge Side, Loge Back), and P2,00 (Balcony) -- available via Ticket2Me via this LINK.

Dulaang UP: Review of MGA ANAK NG UNOS: Crucial Colloquies on the Climate Crisis

March 28, 2025

SA GITNA NG DIGMAAN NG MGA MAHIWAGANG NILALANG LABAN SA SANGKATAUHAN

Playwright: Joshua Lim So

Director: José Estrella

Angered by the destruction caused by miners, a powerful deity with ten heads Dadanhayan Ha Sugay (Jasper John) commanded the rain, lightning and thunder to punish them. The torrential rainfall from this strong storm caused a major landslide on a mountainside. A tamaraw named Tanya was trapped in the heavy mud. Another deity dressed in red Abunnawas (Tristan Bite) tried to pull the poor animal out, but he could not do it himself. 

The point of this hour-long play seemed simple enough. Mother Nature and its indigenous gods cannot save the creatures of the world from the destruction inflicted by greedy, uncaring humans. They need other responsible humans to step up and act, in order to get the healing process up and running. Unfortunately, I felt there were too many supernatural characters in the mix that made the play feel unnecessarily long and complex. Unfamiliarity with the multi-regional mythologies Lim So used made the story hard to follow at first. 

CLIMATE IN CRAZIES

Devised from the play "Scenes from the Climate Era" by David Finnigan

Directors: Issa Manalo Lopez, Tess Jamias

This play was a energetic series of vignettes about various aspects of climate change and how this phenomenon affected ordinary people all over the world. The directors and the cast devised the play "Scenes from the Climate Era" by Australian playwright David Finnigan and made its situations more relatable to a Filipino audience. Through its runtime of a little over one hour, the episodes ranged from comical slapstick to dead serious, and thought-provoking all throughout.

The four versatile main actors -- Delphine Buencamino, Bong Cabrera, Herbie Go and Ethan King -- played various characters, doing anything from roller-blading to speaking Mandarin. There were scenes about the impact of having children on the environment, the hidden dangers of using plastic vs. paper bags, and seeming futility of composting and recycling. They talked about losing a sense of the future because they felt that everything they did would hurt the planet, using terms like "eco-anxiety" or "climate distress."

They educate us about important events in the history of the climate change issue, from the first Earth Summit in Rio in 1992 to the fate of the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 under Clinton.  They discuss the bad consequences of eating takeout, online shopping or polyester fashion. They enumerate animals which had recently gone extinct. The most alarming scenes were those that describe how the rising heat can adversely affect air travel and current geography.

Adding a uniquely Filipino touch to the play was presence of the local mythical character of Mebuyan (MJ Briones). In Bagobo culture, she was a goddess with multiple breasts to provide milk to dead babies. In the context of this play, Mebuyan represented Mother Earth herself, whose body is already wrapped up in trash bags. She acted as conscience and Greek chorus in this play, singing about how Philippine politicians targeted environmental activists.

We are currently in a climate era, and it is only just beginning. There may be renewable sources of energy now, but with current attitudes, they may not be sustainable for long. The ending sequence was a powerful and disturbing montage of futuristic disasters around the world brought about by the critical global warming. Optimism and hope are among the stages of dealing with climate change, but definitive action is urgently needed now.  

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"Mga Anak ng Unos" runs at the IBG-KAL Theater, University of the Philippines Diliman, from March 28 to April 13, 2025. There are 7;30 pm shows every Friday and Saturday. 2:30 pm matinees on Saturdays and Sundays, and 10:30 am shows every Sunday. The show runs for a total of 2-1/2 hours, with a 15 minute intermission between to the two short plays. You can buy your tickets via this LINK. Tickets cost P1000 for regular, and P650 for UP students.  

Review of PARA KAY B: A Writer's Way with Words

March 22, 2025

When author Lucas was writing his anthology of short stories about women, he believed that love had a quota, not all love stories will succeed. Irene was averse to boys whose names began with a J. Sandra regularly spent time going to Room 23 of a motel. Erica was an online endorser from a place where the residents have forgotten how to love. Ester was a widow whose only memento of her greatest love was a photocopied photograph. 

His fifth story was about Bessie, who was an aspiring actress. Even if she was a loud, talkative extrovert in contrast to Lucas's quiet, withdrawn introvert, she was Lucas's inspiration in writing this set of stories. She was the B in the title of the book, as Lucas was dedicating his stories to her. However, she still cavorted with a politician's son Brigs and the two played a very cruel prank on Lucas. Lucas was very hurt, such that her story was left unresolved.

Ever-reliable Nicco Manalo underplays Lucas to give the five women protagonists of his stories their respective spotlight. Ava Santos's Bessie was loud, bold and brazen. Martha Comia shared her Irene's astounding photographic memory to her impressive line delivery.  Matel Patayon's Sandra (alternate Sarah Garcia) told the most unsettling taboo story. Via Antonio's Erica (alternate Yesh Burce) was outrageously humorous as expected. The arc of Olive Nieto's Ester (alternate Liza Dino) played more smoothly these days than 20 years ago. 

Esteban Mara (alternate Vincent Pajara) was the old friend Jordan Irene was looking for. Gino Ramirez played Lupe, Sandra's playmate in the warehouse. Gold Aceron (alternate AJ Benoza) played Ester's gay son AJ, while Kath Castillo played Ester's former maid Sarah. Jay Gonzaga played both Erica's chiseled beau Jake, as well as Bessie's violent hot-head Brigs. Divine Aucina played Jake's mother Mrs. Baylon and the wife of San Ildefonso's mayor. Aldo Vencilao played Lucas's writing mentor Pio, as well as Sandra's and Sarah's husbands.

This play was adapted by playwright Eljay Castro Deldoc from a 2008 best-selling book by National Artist Ricky Lee. Deldoc's process of stage adaptation started in 2011 and he would continue to evolve it every time it was restaged, including this present updated one. Deldoc was able to distill all the six chapters of the book to essentials, with some difficult topics and hints of politics. Director Yong Tapang, Jr. weaved it into a most entertaining whole, even if this current iteration of the play runs for a hefty 2-1/2 hours, with a 10 minute intermission.

The active interaction between a male author and his female characters (including his muse) is a very interesting premise. The women want agency over their own stories. They did not want an open ending that made their fates uncertain. They can even interrupt the writer during the time that he was still telling their stories. This meta approach gives us a hint on how Ricky Lee worked as a writer, metaphorically allowing his characters to critique how he wrote about them. Deldoc's script and Tapang's vision truly made this stage version very engaging to watch.  

The whole cast at the curtain call

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"Para Kay B" is a production by the LA Production House and Fire & Ice Live. It runs from March 14 to 30, 2025 at the Doreen Black Box Theater of the Arete in the Ateneo de Manila University. Tickets run from P2,500, P2,000 and P1,800, via Ticket2Me. 

Idea First: Review of ANINO SA LIKOD NG BUWAN (Regular Run): Steeped in Sensual Strategy

March 15, 2025

It was the year 1993. Peasant Nardo and his wife Emma were driven out of their village when it was attacked by the rebels. They became close friends with Joel, a soldier who helped them settle in this new community. One year after they met, on one night with an eclipse, Joel visited their shack to bring them some food, and also to play cards with them. However, when Nardo had to go fetch water at the well, Joel and Emma had other plans in mind. 

I first knew of this Jun Robles Lana work as a film that he both wrote and directed. The film was noted for its remarkable camera work as it followed the three main characters in one long continuous take in and around a small hut furnished only with a dining table and a bed, which notoriously included a 15-minute long sex scene. It starred Luis Alandy as Joel, Anthony Falcon as Nardo, and LJ Reyes, who won the Urian for Best Actress, as Emma. (MY REVIEW)

It turned out that this material was actually first written as a one-act play in 1993, when Lana was only 20 years old. It won first place in the Bulwagang Gantimpala playwrighting contest back then. When Idea First decided to venture into producing theater plays, it seemed natural that "Anino sa Likod ng Buwan" was their first choice. However, Lana decided to have someone else direct the project, a job which went to seasoned director Tuxqs Rutaquio. 

The first time I watched this play was a "stripped-down" press preview show held last February 9 at the Arete in Ateneo. That show starred the main cast of this run, namely Martin del Rosario as Joel, Ross Pesigan as Nardo and Elora Espano as Emma. The second time I watched was today during the regular run at the PETA Theater, starring the understudies, namely Edward Benosa as Joel, Vincent Pajara as Nardo and Denise Esteban as Emma. 

Del Rosario, Espano, Pesigan

at their curtain call

At the Arete, director Rutaquio's set design consisted of a hut with a small dining table and a bed, a small closet, and a doorway. There were three columns at the back where shadowy trees were projected to represent the forest outside the house. The lighting design of John Batalla and the sound design of TJ Ramos complete the atmosphere of tension and dread. The show felt long, running for about 2 hours without an intermission.

Elora Espano and Ross Pesigan are veteran theater actors whose stage experience started in their student days in UP Diliman. Also very daring in her indie films, Espano captured the passionate fervor and mental alertness of Emma as she engaged in dangerous games. Pesigan imbued Nardo with an obfuscating air of blankness that may be interpreted as folly on one side, or cold-bloodedness on the other extreme.   

Movie and TV star Martin del Rosario is making his first foray on the legitimate stage with this play, and what an auspicious debut this was! Unlike other neophytes, del Rosario delivered Joel's kilometric lines with confidence and energy, giving them a 100% emotional wallop. He was very comfortable with his body even during sensual scenes in various stages of undress. He was never self-conscious, as if he had been doing stage work for years.  

Benosa, Esteban, Pajara

at their curtain call

At the PETA, the set was basically the same house and its furnishings we saw at the Arete, enhanced by more red lighting and more eerie sound effects. However, this time the three trees at the back of the house were huge three-dimensional tree replicas with thick roots. There was an area on stage where Emma would use real water to take a bath. This time around, the play felt brisker and more streamlined as expected, lasting only 1 hour 45 minutes without a break.

I had seen Vincent Pajara act on stage several times before, from "Ang Nawalang Kapatid" (2014) to "Sakuntala" (2017), to "Dekada 70" (2020). His Nardo felt more mature and confident, not a wimpy cuckold at all. Edward Benosa's voice sounded a bit hoarse, but he was still able to deliver convincingly as Joel, with his hefty build exuding swagger and sensuality. He just tended to have unnatural hand gestures which can be distracting. 

The biggest revelation here was VMX star Denise Esteban, who was also on her debut as a stage actress -- and what a difficult role she got right off the bat. During this regular run, there was actual back side nudity from Emma right from her very first scene bathing, then she got more daring during the sex scenes. Esteban's Emma really got the audience reacting during her scenes as we heard audible gasps and whispers with many of her explosive lines. 

The sex scenes during the regular run looked more graphic, but carefully blocked. However, more than these steamy moments, it was really still the complex, convoluted plotting of the story, and those lengthy, well-written arguments and counter-arguments about marital morality, or military-rebel conflicts, that held us rapt in attention throughout the play, until that intense final act. Watching it a second time around was even better. 

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Idea First Live's production of Jun Lana's "Anino sa Likod ng Buwan" runs from March 1 to 23, 2025 at the PETA Theater Center in Quezon City. Ticket prices range from P2464 (Orchestra VIP Cushioned), P2240 (Orchestra Center, Balcony Center), P2016 (Orchestra Side) and P1120 (Balcony Side). The playbill is for sale at the lobby at the price of P500. This contains the whole script for you to savor at your own time.  

TP: Review of KISAPMATA: Horrific House

March 8, 2025

Ex-policeman Dadong (Jonathan Tadioan) ran his household located in Zapote Street like a tight ship. He led with an iron hand to enforce his own set of strict unconventional rules that he came up with. His wife Dely (Lhorvie Nuevo) was already numbed to all the years of physical, sexual and psychological abuse under him. She was content to just followed him blindly, whatever he asked her to do, no matter how irrational it was.  

Their only daughter Mila (Toni Go) was preparing to take the medical board exam, when she suddenly started having morning sickness. It was only then that she told her parents that she already had a boyfriend, a doctor named Noel (Marco Viana), and they wanted to get married.  Dadong agreed, but on the condition that Noel paid a prohibitive dowry, and, using Dely's delicate condition as an excuse, that they won't move out. 

The original "Kisapmata" was a 1981 film directed by Mike de Leon. De Leon also co-wrote it along with Clodualdo del Mundo Jr. and Raquel Villavicencio, based on a true-to-life crime story entitled "The House on Zapote Street" written by Nick Joaquin. Starring Vic Silayan, Charo Santos, Jay Ilagan, and Charito Solis, it swept the awards at the 7th MMFF where it premiered, and is now recognized as one of the best Filipino films ever made. 

People who had watched this original film before would be very well aware of the twisted nature of the story. Luarca's adaptation made things more eerie by making mother Dely as the narrator, as well as some sort of color commentator inserting her own ominous remarks while the other characters were talking. We barely had a chance to breathe as this intensely gripping play ran straight for a squeamish hour and half without an intermission. 

The quartet playing the four main characters were none other than the senior members of Tanghalang Pilipino's Actors' Studio -- Tadioan, Nuevo, Go and Viana. As expected, each of them gave memorable performances which will surely be recognized for awards by year's end, thereby adding for the other awards they've won before. As early as now, the award for Ensemble Acting in a Play seems to be in the bag already, if only for their mental stress of playing these damaged characters live on stage multiple times 

Tadioan's imposing bodily heft looked intimidating even if he was just silently standing around with his sinister scowl. He affected this wheezy voice that made his Dadong more creepy, truly a devil incarnate. Nuevo's physical demonstrations of abuse and haunting whispery voice were disturbing to watch and listen to.  Go's Mila was the poster-girl of Stockholm Syndrome, caught between filial loyalty and self-happiness. Viana's Noel was like an animal desperate to free himself from the trap he unwittingly got caught in. 

The raised green stage was generally empty with only two boxes up there, surrounded by a box of soil with stalks of grass, where Dadong grew his earthworms. There was an open doorway at the back showing a field of tall grass. Aside from Dadong's gun and machete, the ensemble only pantomimed the doors, the shower or the rotary phone. Overhead there were screens where the times of day was flashed so we can get a sense of the time.

I had seen the movie before, and I would admit that I never saw it more than a crime story. However, in this play version, the screens above also reveal the real-life local political situation in the early 80s that this story of tyranny and oppression represented. Dadong represented the all-powerful dictator. Dely and Mila represented the country and her citizens, victims of his perverse concept of "love". Noel represented the martyrs who wanted to rescue the hostages, but lost their lives in the process. 

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Tanghalang Pilipino's "Kisapmata" runs from March 7 - 30, 2025 at the Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez, CCP Complex. Tickets sell at P2000 for VIP and P1500 for Regular, which you can still buy from this LINK.