The Virgin Labfest 9 Experience Part 1

The Virgin Labfest, the much anticipated theater festival where untried, untested and unstaged plays are presented, is also known as one of the rare times when actors and directors from various theater companies get to work together. Unfortunately, this year’s edition will also be remembered as the time when the theater community grieved together as they lost one of their own: veteran actress Ama Quiambao who passed away a week after collapsing while in the middle of a performance during the festival’s first few days. This heartbreak inevitably put a damper in the remaining days of festival. But Tuxqs Rutaquio, the festival director, said that because of this unexpected turn of events, he saw firsthand how the theater community bonded and worked together far beyond what was expected from them which was to put up a good show on stage.

It’s sad to remember that a few days before the Virgin Labfest 9 opened, I was able to have a conversation with Ama Quiambao at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. She and her co-star Carme Sanchez just finished their rehearsals for their play and they were taking a rest. She and I have bumped into each other a handful of times at the CCP and she was always very nice to me. We started talking about her upcoming play, other small stuff and then she eventually asked me if I think that Charice Pempengco could still stage a successful comeback amid all the controversy surrounding her. I told her yes, if she releases a very good song. We also discussed how difficult it is nowadays to sustain popularity in the age of YouTube wherein the current online sensation could be easily forgotten the next day once the newest online sensation comes along. Lastly, she told me that despite losing the best actress award at the Gawad Urian, she was thrilled and very happy for Nora Aunor who beat her. Who knew at that time that that would be the last meeting and conversation that we would ever have?

The theater world is represented by two masks, one smiling and one frowning. And I’ve never felt it more during the Virgin Labfest 9 but as they say, the show must go on.

Set A

Kapit

by George de Jesus

This play, set in a bedroom, focuses on a mother (Sherry Lara) forcing her grown up son (Chrome Cosio) to step up and be a man. As their story goes on, the audience is led to believe that the two were having an incestuous relationship. The mother, wearing a nightgown, seems jealous when she learned that the son, wearing a tanktop and boxer shorts, was seeing the mother of his child again. One can’t help but think that the two are indeed engaged in a romantic relationship. But, a plot twist reveals otherwise. This twist is presented via a flashback between the mother and what I believe, was her actual son. I got a bit lost during this flashback since it wasn’t executed clearly enough and I wasn’t sure if I got things right, that the mother did have an incestuous relationship with her deceased son. And this relationship she wanted to relive through her current boytoy whom she treats like her actual son. But in the end, she decides to end the relationship as she reveals her imminent death.

Imbisibol

by Herlyn Gail Alegre

Onyl Torres and Amando Quintana Jr.

This play is about Filipino illegal workers in Japan and the lengths that they had to go through in order to support their families back home without getting caught by the authorities. Two of them, Manuel (Lou Veloso) and Benjie (Only Torres) go to the house of Manang Linda (Lui Manansala) to claim letters sent to fictitious names to keep themselves under the radar. This unusual support system also puts Manang Linda at risk although she has obtained legal status by marrying a Japanese national. This underground system seems to work well for them until Rodel (Amando Quintana Jr.), another Filipino worker with legal status, gets into deep trouble with the law. The support system completely abandons him and it becomes everyman for himself. I was impressed by the superb performances of Lui Manansala and Lou Veloso with their textured portrayals of their characters. As always, Lou Veloso’s uncanny sense of timing makes his punchlines very effective.

Kudeta! Kudeta!

by Jimmy Flores

Politics and religion are two things that I usually avoid discussing with people. Not only does the discussion end up in a heated debate but I am really turned off by such religious and political grandstanding by anyone. So, it’s no surprise that I squirmed when I realize that this play revolved around these two topics heavily. In the play set in a different yet all to familiar realm during the start of the new millennium, a fallen angel (Opaline Santos) dressed as a rugby sniffing beggar tries to convince a coma patient (Garry Lim) to aid her in ousting Lucifer from his throne in hell. They almost succeed but an angel (Myke Salomon) who was disguised as a blind street singer foils the duo’s plan. Then the conflict between the singer and the beggar begins touching upon religious tenets and political events during that time. Another demon (Jonathan Tadioan) joins in the struggle with the coma patient caught in the middle. And soon enough, what I’ve been trying to avoid in real life was right there on stage. It was not easy sitting throughout this play, hear them talk about free will and fight for the soul of the coma patient. I do not even subscribe to the existence of angels and demons in the first place. It became too much for me to handle and I was glad for it to finish.

Set D

Pramoedya

by Benjamin Pimentel

Indonesian novelist Pramoedya Ananta Toer’s story was the main topic of the Virgin Labfest 9’s only full length play. The story of Pramoedya (Nanding Josef) was presented through dance, re-imagining of his works and also through the eyes of a Filipino journalist Fides (Cris Villonco). It started when Pramoedya gets caught and is imprisoned on a remote island. Without any materials to write with, he still manages to write a story by telling it orally to his fellow prisoners. And this story, about Minke from This Earth of Mankind, was re-enacted throughout the play. Years after, Pramoedya is set free and he becomes the subject matter of Filipino journalist Fides who flies over to Indonesia. And while she was still there, Pramoedya receives a notice that he’s one of the recipients of the Ramon Magsaysay Award. But not everyone is happy about it and Fides gets to know soon enough why. This was a textured and well executed play and I didn’t get confused at all with the dance interludes, flashbacks and re-enactments that happened throughout Pramoedya. I admit that I got confused when it was mentioned in a conversation between Pramoedya and Fides that ten years ago, the Marcoses were still in power, and yet in a latter scene, Fides was heard telling her editor, that she has already sent an e-mail containing her interview. I wondered if journalists on the road had easy access to their e-mail accounts around a decade after Marcos was no longer in power. Also, since I have no knowledge of Pramoedya prior to the play, I had to put my trust in the playwright for the accuracy of his story. But the prologue had me casting doubts since it contained basically a disclaimer regarding the story’s veracity. And by the end when the cast started to thank Pramoedya for telling stories, I felt that it was too forced and was too cheesy for my taste. Sherry Lara, Lou Veloso, Bong Cabrera, Billy Parjan, Richard Cunanan, Thea Gloria, Mayen Estañero, Gino Ramirez, Kat Castillo, Kristofer Kilatchko, Alex Dorolla and Bembol Rocco make up the rest of the cast of Pramoedya.

Kat Castillo and Gino Ramirez

I completely missed last year’s Virgin Labfest which was very unfortunate. So after a year’s absence, it was nice to be back and it did feel like I was a virgin again while watching my first set this year.

The Virgin Labfest 9 Experience Part 2