Since
I missed last year’s Virgin Labfest, I really wanted to see Set E that features
plays from the previous labfest. This gave me an opportunity to have a glimpse
of what were the notable productions that got a lot of buzz from last year’s
crop. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed with what I saw since I didn’t find the
plays from Set E that exceptional. It made me wonder about the rest of the
plays that was presented last year. I also had a setback when I was on my way
to the Cultural Center of the Philippines
to watch Set B. A sudden heavy downpour resulted in such heavy traffic that I
arrived late (a rarity) and completely missed the first play of the set Owel. Lastly, my schedule didn’t permit
me to watch Set C, so I missed a total of four plays (Owel, Pamamanhikan, Kung Paano Ako Naging Leading Lady and Ambong Abo) in this edition of the
Virgin Labfest.
Set
E
Ang Unang Regla ni John
by
Em Mendez
The
performance that I watched was marked by the absence of cast member Joshua
Deocareza prompting director George de Jesus to step in and play the actor’s
role as one of the burly and brawny brothers in the play. He had a script in
tow and I think that most of the comic timing was lost along the way. The play
is basically about John (Bobby John Pimentel) who dreads the sprouting of hair
in various body parts that goes along with entering puberty. John is left to
bear the brunt of his brothers’ (Paul Jake Paule and Deocareza/de Jesus)
incessant teasing and the expectations of his widower father (Julienne Mendoza)
who want him to continue his barbershop business. Then one night, John dreams
about a woman (Adrienne Vergara) who is supposed to be the desire of everyman.
But to that woman’s disbelief, John desires to be that woman who is all smooth
and hairless. And when John wakes up, he has officially entered puberty and
along with it, his greatest fear. The way he resolved this dilemma was
unsatisfying for my taste. Yes, the end result was what the title suggested but
it didn’t mean a lot for me. I wasn’t able to see any inner growth in the
character of John to go along with the physical change that he has experienced
in the story.
Pagsubli
by
Aizel Cabilan
This
short play is about a chance meeting between a young woman (Che Ramos) who is
waiting for her bus to arrive and a native old, man (Dante Balois) who just
happens to be there at the same waiting shed. The woman has just finished her
unsuccessful search in that province for the father that she has never met.
They engage in a conversation, connect through obscure songs, and tell each
other the circumstances that brought them at the same place. And soon enough, I
already figured it out that the old man that she was talking to was her father.
And when he started talking about his daughter whom he longs to return, I knew
that my guess was right. But all too quickly, the bus arrives, the woman leaves
and his realization comes a bit too late. The overall material was very short
but the actors’ subtle, intimate and very believable acting was the high
point in this play. I am not sure if the play would’ve
succeeded if it added more to it.
Mga Kuneho
by
Guelan Luarca
This
had the most intriguing premise in the whole set: five men (Roeder Camañag,
Paul Jake Paule, Marco Viaña, Fitz Bitana and Chrome Cosio) who were hired to
move a body bag from one room to another find themselves locked inside with the
only way out is by killing the right person among the five of them. Violent,
gory and not for the squeamish (feces, anyone?), this play kept the audience at
the edge of their seats. As the body count piles up, I wonder who will be the
last one standing and if he does indeed get out. But this story of an unknown
entity forcing people to kill each other until one is left alive felt too much
like Battle Royale for me. But for
others, they probably felt that this was like The Hunger Games but I haven’t read nor watched this so I can’t
tell. Too bad that I didn’t care too much about the characters in the play so even
though I was curious to find out who would be the one left standing, I wasn’t
really affected by the other deaths.
Set
B
Chipline
by
Dominique La Victoria
I
was very interested in this play because it had the distinction of being the
first ever Virgin Labfest play to be entirely in Cebuano. I did wonder how the
director would handle the material for it to be accessible for those who do not
understand the language. The story focuses on three children (Jewel Tomolin,
J.P. Gedang and Lovern Calucay) who are facing the loss of their playground for
a new zipline park will be built on it. They react differently towards this
news with one feeling optimistic that there will be job opportunities for him
in this soon to be built establishment. A stubborn one doesn’t want to lose
their playground and doesn’t care about the zipline. He ignores the “No Trespassing”
sign and if I’m not mistaken, he gets trapped in the end when the heavy machinery
begins constructing. This play was hard to understand because I don’t speak
Cebuano. I had to rely on the actor’s performance and the few words that I
could grasp to know what was going on.
Isang Daan
by
Liza Magtoto
This
comedy started out with a lot of promise but it ended flat for me. Ting (Jelson
Bay Jelson
Bay Jelson Bay high point .
I heard that he wasn’t able to make it at an earlier show and director Ed
Lacson had to step in for him. It’s hard to imagine anyone else but Jelson in
that role and I wonder if Ed was able to pull it off effectively. Jelson is
joined in the play by Joelle Marie Therese Yuvienco, Mila Rose Romero, Karnina
Haniel, Mario Mendoza Jr., Jean Judith Javier, Noel Taylo, Kiki Baento and
Adrienne Vergara
 |
| Jelson Bay |
Two of
the plays from Sets E and B featured some liquids spewing and I witnessed that a
few audience members who sat right in front were unlucky to have their clothes spilled
by whatever those liquids were. One guy was laughing heartily during the
earlier moments of Unang Regla, but
when what was supposed to be vomit got into his jeans, he no longer laughed
like he did during the remainder of the play as he was busy wiping his jeans.
The same also goes for Isang Daan
when the supposed to be oil spill reached a couple of audience members seated
on the front row. Spewing liquids seem like a neat trick on stage but it could
make for uncomfortable moments for unfortunate members of the audience. And I
saw how much of a hassle it was wiping the stuff and worrying if it would stain
their clothing. I do hope that future productions will be more conscious about
their audience and not go overboard with these effects.
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