Barefoot: Review of THE LAST FIVE YEARS ( 2023): Bane of a Breakup

October 1, 2023

Jamie was a writer who just had a book out. Cathy was an aspiring actress. They were happy together and got married. However, for the next five years, circumstances kept them apart most of the time. Jamie was frequently in New York City promoting his book, getting high on his success. Cathy was left in Ohio, making the rounds of auditions, usually getting disappointed with rejections. They eventually broke up.

That last bit was not exactly a spoiler, as this whole show was all about their break-up rather than how they met. It opens with a miserable Cathy finding a break-up note from Jamie and his ring which he left behind, and she was singing "Still Hurting." Sudden shift of mood at the other end of the stage, watching an excited Jamie singing about a non-Jewish girl he was dating, whom he called his "Shiksa Goddess" -- Cathy. 

From there, writer Jason Robert Brown told Cathy's story going backwards in time, while telling Jamie's story going forwards. The show essentially had its two actors singing monologues on their own sides of the stage for the majority of the time. They only got together once in the middle of the show, to sing "The Next Ten Minutes" as a duet, depicting the blissful time in their lives, when Jamie proposed to Cathy and they get married.

Back in 2003, this show had already been staged locally at the RCBC Plaza, starring Philippine theater royalty Audie Gemora and Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, directed by Bart Guingona. I was able to see the second local staging in 2014 produced by 9 Works, staged also at the RCBC Plaza, starring Joaquin Valdes and Nikki Gil, directed by Robbie Guevara. In 2015, a film version was released, starring Jeremy Jordan and Anna Kendrick.

I admit that when I first watched this show in 2014, I found the non-linear telling of the story confusing, and the wordy narrative songs not very much to my liking. This time around, I am now familiar with the story and the unique storytelling style, but those long-winded songs with many obscure ethnic references, I am not exactly a fan yet still. I believe that these are the types of songs that need repeat listenings to be familiarized with.

As the lyrics were key to full appreciation of the songs, It was unfortunate that the sound system at the Power Mac Spotlight Blackbox Theater in the matinee show I watched made it difficult for me to understand the lyrics, especially the first half of the show. I am actually not sure if the sound issue is just with me only or where I was seated. I observed that there were other people reacting to the certain lyrics with laughter in another part of the theater. 

I noted in my 2014 review (MY REVIEW) that it was the actors who elevated the whole show experience for me, and again the same is true this time around. Real-life newly-wed husband and wife Myke Salomon and Gab Pangilinan were in a unique life situation and undeniable chemistry to be able to imbue this material with unfiltered emotions that connect with the audience, those unclear lyrics and unfamiliar references notwithstanding. 

Gab Pangilinan's soaring singing voice is truly sparkling, seemingly effortless as she navigated those high notes and tricky lyrics of songs like "A Summer in Ohio" and the emotional depths of songs like "See I'm Smiling." The role of Jamie was a thankless one as he seemed to be the one who failed to make his marriage work. Nevertheless, Myke Salomon's charm still made him sympathetic. For me, his best vocal performance was in that song he sang to his sleeping mistress, "Nobody Needs to Know."

New York City-based set designer Joey Mendoza built a long raised stage in running lengthwise when you enter the blackbox theater, with the viewers seated on either side. This stage was divided into three long sections -- two covered with faux grass, and a central aisle where a mechanized platform moved from one end to the other, ferrying the characters where the story required them to be. When you are watching an actor sing on one end, you cannot see the other end, so you will tend to look left and right during the show. 

Kudos to director Topper Fabregas for his sensitive directorial style for tell this heavy depressing story. Musical director Rony Fortich expertly conducted his talented string musicians on violin, cello, bass and guitar, with Farley Asuncion on the piano.

*****

The Barefoot Theater Collaborative's "The Last Five Years" runs from September 29 to October 15, 2023 at the PMC Spotlight Blackbox Theater, Circuit Makati.

Recap of ANYWHERE WE SING IS HOME: The CCP's 54th Anniversary Gala

September 10, 2023

The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) is celebrating its 54th founding anniversary this month. However, since it is currently being renovated, the whole CCP proper is not available to stage a major gala concert to be held to celebrate the milestone. Therefore this special event was instead held in the Samsung Performing Arts Center in the Ayala Circuit Makati Mall for two performances, September 9 at 8 pm and September 10 Sunday at 3 pm.  

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra played the music conducted by no less than by National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab. For each artist who sang in the show, their spiels revealed what year their first time to perform on the CCP stage was and on what production. They will then relate their own stage experiences with more personal detail with nostalgic effect. The show was directed by the ever-fabulous Floy Quintos.

Headlining the gala this year is Joanna Ampil, who was prominently in theater news lately for portraying the Engineer in the latest revival of "Ms. Saigon" in the UK. Not only that she was the first female to do so, the fact that she had played Kim before made this inspired casting even more remarkable.  (Ironically, Ampil did not get to sing any song from "Ms. Saigon" in this concert, be it a Kim song nor an Engineer song.)

Wearing a shiny black suit and pants ensemble, Ampil opened the concert by coming down a spiral flight of stairs on stage right, singing "As If We Never Said Goodbye" from "Sunset Boulevard." She followed this up with an energetic rendition of the sassy "Don't Rain on My Parade" from "Funny Girl." She then introduced the next two singers, both "Ms. Saigon" alumni abroad like her, to sing the next medley of Filipino songs with her.

After singing a triumphant "Nais Ko," Ampil left the stage. Gerald Santos sang "Hahanapin Ko," followed by a visibly expecting Aicelle Santos in a white maternity gown, singing "Narito Ako." Aicelle went on to sing "What I Did for Love" from "A Chorus Line". Gerald came back on to sing "Hanggang," his winning song when he won "Pinoy Pop Superstar" 2005, which he won over Aicelle. The two ended their set with "Ms. Saigon" most famous duets -- "Sun & Moon" and "Last Night of the World."

Ampil came back out on the stage wearing a bright green body-hugging gown with fuschia designs and a matching scarf on her head to sing "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from "Jesus Christ Superstar." Then she introduced Sheila Francisco, and they sang a slowed-down arrangement of "Happy Talk" and the ethereal "Bali Hai," both sung in "South Pacific" by Bloody Mary, a character they've both played in the UK. Francisco then took centerstage to sing a powerful, gritty and show-stopping rendition of "Some People, " a song by a character she longed to play onstage, Mama Rose of "Gypsy." 

Ampil returned onstage to introduce her next three younger guests, who had never performed in musical productions abroad yet -- Arman Ferrer, Reb Atadero and Gab Pangilinan (the only one of them who had not actually sung on the CCP stage yet). The four of them sang a medley of dreamy songs by Michel Legrand, including "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life" and "The Summer Knows" (love theme from the film "The Summer of '42").

Three songs composed by Ryan Cayabyab for Filipino musicals were next, so Toma Cayabyab came out to replace his father to conduct the orchestra for this segment. With her rich soprano, Pangilinan led off by singing "Magbalik Ka Na Mahal," then duetted with Ferrer in "Iisa ang Tibok," both from "Rama Hari." Ferrer then brought the house down with an impassioned "Awit ni Isagani" from "El Filibusterismo" with his robust tenor voice, then ending on an exquisite head tone key switch in his final note.

Reb Atadero returned to sing "Being Alive" from Sondheim's "Company," then gushed about his surreal experience of having Mr. C playing piano for him. He then reintroduced Ampil, who had now changed into an elegant silver evening gown. She sang two big ballads from her most iconic Broadway roles -- Fantine's "I Dreamed a Dream" from "Les Miserables" and Grizabella's "Memory" from "Cats." All her guest artists, this time dressed in glittering black, returned to the stage to join Ampil to sing Wency Cornejo's "Next in Line" as their inspirational finale, dedicated to the artists who will grace the CCP in the future.

Review of Tanghalang Ateneo's ARDOR: An Affair in Anarchy

September 3, 2023

A bomb exploded at one political rally being conducted by student activists. When their leader Astrid was hit and injured by shrapnel, she was rescued and brought to a safer place by one of her members named Z.  Outside, there was the smoky confusion and anguish over the casualties was going on. Meanwhile, Astrid and Z got carried away with the intimacy they shared and made love in spite of the pain and peril. 

This was the central love affair that was born in the middle of the violent revolutionary movement threatening to oust a corrupt dictator out of his position. Astrid still worked closely with her ex-boyfriend Luther, who still co-led their movement with her. Z was taking care of his precocious 7-year old cousin named Kali, whom people knew as an indigo child. Based on secret information she learned, Kali roused the other activists into more fiery action.  

This complicated play was written and directed by Guelan Varela-Luarca. It unfolded in one tense continuous act, one hour and 40 minutes long, with several scenes in which the young cast would be running all around the stage. Opening with a scene of a young girl Kali (Teia Contreras) talking to her petticoat-wearing cat (Nicole Chua) about the cosmos, you somehow get an inkling that this would not be as straightforward as you thought. 

When Kali let loose her long incendiary monologue in Act 2, it was at that moment that you be able to make sense of all the confusing dots together to that point. Still, Kali was such an over-the-top and and out-of-the-box character, as only Luarca could have created. Delicate-looking Teia Contreras really gave this character her all, even at the risk of losing her voice with her passionate orations, which required her to shout her lungs out. 

Jam Binay, Zoe De Ocampo, Teia Contreras, Kagi Umpad

The love triangle angle of the story gave a more personal dimension, but for me it did not work, mainly because a casting choice. I do not usually comment about an actor's physical features, but in this case, Zoe de Ocampo, his acting skills notwithstanding, felt miscast as Z, mainly because of his diminutive height and build beside Jam Binay as Astrid. Astrid saying "I love you" to him never once rang true, as there was no chemistry or "kilig" at all. 

That thought-provoking scene of Z and Luther talking about their art was very well-written. Ideally, it should have come across as something like a similar scene of the two men in Celine Song's current film "Past Lives." However again, de Ocampo as Z did not look like much of a credible romantic rival, because he looked and acted too immature to match the stronger stage presence of Kagi Umpad as the jaded Luther. 

Overall, all the bourgeois hypocrisies, double-dealings and double-crossings going on in student groups, rebel groups and corrupt dictatorships, and their violent consequences -- were solidly plotted. Luarca's stage tricks using actual flames, definitely raises the sense of danger in the play. By the time that scene with the "Three Little Kittens" video comes along, you are in total sympathy with Kali, even if we do not fully understand why she acted the way she did. 

*****

Guelan Varela-Luarca's "Ardor," maiden production of Tanghalang Ateneo's 45th season with the theme "Pag-ibig at Himagsikan," runs at the Rizal Mini-Theater, Faber Hall, Ateneo de Manila University, from August 26 to September 9, 2023, 2 pm at 7 pm. 

Ticket prices at P500 (General Audiences), P350 (ADMU Loyola School students) and P300 (for ADMU Loyola School scholars). Buy tickets via this LINK.

Reminders: "Ardor" is rated R-13 for its mature theme and scenes of violence. It has strobe lights, smoke and flames, gunshots and explosions.