Bossa Meets Madonna. Bossa Meets Air Supply. Bossa Meets Whitney. I've also seen Bossa Meets The Beatles, Bossa Meets Reggae, Bossa Meets New Wave, Bossa Meets Broadway, Bossa Meets Andrew Lloyd Webber. Heaven forbid there's a Bossa Meets Sondheim coming up, but at the rate this sub-genre keeps cannibalizing the world's collective songbook--flattening, distorting, draining the life and originality out of good songs and real music and homogenizing them into aural wallpaper--who knows? Bossa Meets Hard Metal, anyone? Bossa Meets Kundiman? A trend catches the barest of fires, it has to be milked to the bone--the record companies' homage to the concept of reductio ad absurdum. After their bloodless, mechanical facsimile of the sleek Brazilian beat has gutted the entire musical stockpile, it might even turn on itself for the ultimate act of self-fellatio: Bossa Meets Bossa. Now, that would be interesting. Look what you've done, Sitti.
Aww, what have they done to one of my favorite Cinemalaya films? Bi now gay later? I can't stop giggling. The demented copywriter-movie pirate behind this cover might not have realized it, but his invented tagline is the perfect shorthand for the kind of dodge many young Pinoy gay men resort to these days. Or haven't you noticed--on MIRC the Gay-Manila chatroom is long gone, replaced by Bi-Manila. In this town no one's gay anymore at a young age, only bi. Meaning, of course, not that they swing both ways (yuckiedooders), only that they're more butch, “straight-acting”--or they think they are. There you have it: evolving sexual constructs in a witty nutshell. Even in pirated form, Jay deserves better packaging and a more germane tagline (no, the movie has nothing to do with bi-to-gay transitions). But this one's a keeper.
An institution in Philippine music and theater is feted for her immense contributions to and bold leadership in the field. As the Philstage citation put it: A multi-awarded singer, actress and theater and music producer, [she] co-founded the pioneering Musical Theater Philippines as its artistic director. Through her efforts, the production of original Filipino musicals flourished for over two decades starting in the 1980s. As founding president of the Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit and Philstage, she was also instrumental in steering the country's only alliance of professional performing arts companies.
Here is Celeste Legaspi, formidable and elegant as ever, receiving her Natatanging Gawad Buhay!
PLUS: Reposting--Ms. Legaspi performing Tuliro, one of her enduring hits, in Rubies, the CCP's 40th anniversary concert last year.
PLUS PLUS: Many moons ago, Celeste Legaspi and the late Rolando Tinio, now National Artist for Theater and Literature, collaborated on a unique project: an album of English-language pop songs translated by Mr. Tinio into Filipino. Because Jessica Zafra blogged about it first, I'll just crib from what she wrote about the album:
The finest translations/adaptations of the words to popular songs were by the great Rolando Tinio. He’d already translated Shakespeare into Filipino, so pop music must’ve been a breeze. Take the Burt Bacharach-Hal David songs, One Less Bell to Answer and A House Is Not A Home. Every time I hear them I start giggling. Look at these lyrics:
One less bell to answer One less egg to fry One less man to pick up after I should be happy but all I do is cry
(Note: Were you the lover or the maid?)
A rudimentary literal translation would begin:
Isang timbreng di sasagutin Isang itlog na di piprituhin...
How about that Philo 11 hommage:
A chair is not a chair Even when there’s no one sitting there But a chair is not a house And a house is not a home
Literally:
Ang salumpuwit ay salumpuwit pa rin Kahit walang nakaupo roon...
Instead of a literal approach that would expose the cornball silliness of the lyrics, Tinio went for the literary.
Di na hahainan Di na susundan Tuwing siya’y may kinakailangan Sinong hindi pa Pasasalamat na
and
Walang nagpapalit Sa datihang ayos ng silid Nguni’t di magpapalit Ang himbing ng pag-idlip...
The risible has been made poignant, and with Celeste Legaspi’s lovely theatrical delivery (very clear enunciation) it’s positively heart-rending. Remember when singers interpreted songs rather than belting the hell out of them? A lot of what passes for singing these days is actually song abuse.
How do these songs sound in Tagalog? Oh, beautiful--the comfortably familiar now spiked with the tang and texture of the vernacular. Listen to three classic '70s cuts below. Note how adroitly Mr. Tinio recasts the lyrics, and how Ms. Legaspi responds in kind by making the songs completely her own.
Going abroad to pursue international education is now more accessible and affordable thanks to StudyWork-Abroad.Com
IL Institute StudyWork-Abroad.Com, in collaboration with top universities from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK, is offering over P10 million worth of scholarships to deserving Filipinos this 2010.
Partner universities include Durham College and Centennial College from Canada; National Technology Institute from New Zealand; Devry University from the USA; and Edinburgh Telford College, Motherwell College and Queen Margaret University from the UK.
“IL Institute StudyWork-Abroad.Com’s long-term vision has always been to provide globalized education and student support services. Through our different programs, the great Filipino dream to go abroad and better their lives is now more possible.” said IL Institute Philippines President Jerry Perez de Tagle.
Representatives from these top universities will be coming to the Philippines this April for the first Nationwide StudyWork-Abroad.Com Expo, where Filipinos can learn how they can avail of these scholarship grants.
The SWAC Expo is a free event that will happen in four key cities in the Philippines:
April 16-18: Podium Mall, Manila April 18: Ayala Mall, Cebu April 20: University of Cordilleras Auditorium, Baguio April 21: Gaisano Mall, Davao
Aside from international institutions, several local companies will also be present to help enlighten Filipinos on how they can pursue their dream of international education.
To know more about the event and to pre-register, visit StudyWork-Abroad.Com or text/call 0922-8170639. The first 2,000 registrants will receive treats during the event proper.
Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo couldn't make it to the CCP Little Theater to accept her trophy for Best Actress-Musical for Rep's Sweeney Todd (her first-ever acting award in over 25 years of sterling work, can you believe that?). So co-star and fellow winner Audie Gemora received the honor on her behalf. Before Audie's turn to bound up the stage, Marvin Ong and Liesl Batucan also collected their own trophies for Best Featured Actor and Actress, respectively.
The four wins made for a sweep of the acting awards in the musical play category. A fifth prize would add to the kitty before the night was over: Outstanding Musical Direction, for Gerard Salonga's voluptuous orchestration of the Stephen Sondheim score.
Money quote of the evening: Audie's acceptance speech. A founding member of Philstage in 1997, the Rep and Trumpets stalwart acknowledged that, in the beginning, he was wary about the idea of giving out awards, because it might yet cause more discord at a time when the country's theater companies had reached a fragile truce and were starting to work together.
“I came from a generation na nag-aaway-away parati ang mga theater companies, where one theater actor could never cross over to another theater company. It was taboo... I'm just so happy that, today, we've blurred the lines, and this is a brotherhood. So I receive this award in that spirit... It's not about who's better, but it's about validation. We validate each other.”
Oliver Oliveros over at BroadwayWorld.com-Philippines has more pictures and tidbits. Here are the three winners accepting their awards (this year, an artwork trophy of a dancing bulul designed by acclaimed young artist Don Salubayba):
PLUS: The second musical break of the evening--Marvin performing Not While I'm Around solo, in character.
Consider his win as the first salvo of a new generation of young theater talents blessedly unburdened by the divisions of the past, who are able to move freely between theater companies, switch easily from English-language to Filipino productions and interact with other industry practitioners in a relatively freer, more mutually nurturing light. After Sweeney Todd, Marvin's next appearance was in an original Filipino musical, PETA's Si Juan Tamad, ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto (another major winner--more about it next post), where he alternated in the lead role with another bright young discovery, Victor Robinson III. From Rep to PETA, and no ruffled feathers in between. The times they are a-changin', indeed.
You're all invited. It's only the awards' second year; you may want to be there when a bit of history is made. Tara na!
The Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, Inc. (Philstage), in cooperation with the Cultural Center of the Philippines, holds the 2009 “Gawad Buhay!: the PHILSTAGE Awards for the Performing Arts,” tonight, March 26, 2010, 7:30 p.m., at the Tanghalang Aurelio Toletino (CCP Little Theater).
The awards show is free admission and open to the public.
Ninety-five artists and productions vie for 30 individual and group award categories honoring outstanding achievements in play, musical and dance productions of Philstage member-companies for 2009.
The two-hour program will feature excerpts of performances from last year’s nominated productions. Invited to perform are Menchu Lauchengco Yulo and Marvin Ong from Repertory Philippines’ “Sweeney Todd;” Joann Co and Victor Robinson III from PETA’s “Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto;” and Candice Adea and Angel Gabriel from Ballet Philippines’ “Masterworks.”
A distinguished achievement award called “Natatanging Gawad Buhay!” will also be conferred on the late Zeneida Amador, Celeste Legaspi and Avon Philippines for their significant contributions to the professionalization of the Philippine performing arts.
This photo has long been assumed to show American soldiers carrying their fallen comrades on makeshift litters during the Bataan Death March in 1942. Now, 65 years later, the Associated Press announces a correction:
A photo released by the U.S. military in 1945, after it was captured from the Japanese, shows allied prisoners of war in the Philippines carrying their comrades in slings. At the time of its release, this photo was identified as dead and wounded being carried by fellow prisoners during the Bataan Death March in April 1942. The original caption on the military handout read: ‘This picture, captured from the Japanese, shows American prisoners using improvised litters to carry those of their comrades, who, from lack of food or water on the march from Bataan, fell along the road. Philippines, May 1942.’ Subsequent information from military archivists, the National Archives and Records Administration, and surviving prisoners, strongly suggests that this photo may actually depict a burial detail at Camp O’Donnell, the Japanese P.O.W. camp where allied prisoners were held after the Bataan Death March.
Full story here. I have a lolo, by the way, who died at Camp O'Donnell after enduring the Death March. His body was never recovered.
Garrison Keillor: The picture of the grinning GOP congressmen holding "Kill the Bill" posters was not an attractive one. Those guys all get excellent hrothgar from the government, at bargain prices. If you choke on your shoe during a speech in the House of Representatives, you'll be whisked away to Walter Reed, and specialists will extract your hoof from your mouth and your head from your colon and clean you up and all for a tiny annual premium. It does not behoove men who are enjoying a huge pork sandwich to deny a few pork rinds to others and to grin in the process.
Folksy, unfussy language that pinches hard while making you chuckle. There's good writing for you.
[Photo: Republican Congressmen holding up handmade signs to rally the crowd of protesters outside of the Capitol before the health care vote. Charles Dharapak/Associated Press]
9 Works Theatrical is holding auditions for its upcoming production of the Broadway musical "The Wedding Singer," based on the 1988 movie starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.
The auditions are on Friday and Saturday, March 19-20, at 15 Garcia Villa Street, San Lorenzo Village, Makati City (The Philippine Opera Company headquarters).
Actors and singers are needed to fill principal and supporting roles:
(1) Robbie Hart (rock tenor, can play guitar, 25-35 years old) A musician and lead singer for a trio that plays at weddings; very charismatic yet insecure with "puppy dog" appeal;
(3) Glen Guglia (baritone, 30-45 years old) A calculating, money-loving Wall Street type;
(4) Holly (pop belter, 20-35 years old) Julia's bubbly, uninhibited and lovable cousin;
(5) George (baritone-tenor, strong falsetto, comic role, can rap, 20-35 years old) Robbie's flamboyantly gay, eccentric friend and fellow band member; and
(6) Rosie (soprano, comic role, can rap, 50+ years old) Robbie's feisty grandmother.
A total of 16 chorus members will be cast.
Impersonators of Ronald Reagan, Nancy Reagan, Mr. T., Tina Turner, Billy Idol, Cyndi Lauper and Imelda Marcos are also needed.
"The Wedding Singer," the musical comedy version of the hit Hollywood film, has music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin and book by Beguelin and Tim Herlihy, who also wrote the movie's screenplay. Their collaboration earned Tony Award nominations in 2006.
"The Wedding Singer" opened on Broadway at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on April 27, 2006. It ran for 284 performances with Tony Award nominee and American lead guitarist Stephen Lynch as Robbie. The musical takes the audience back to the era of big hair and classic '80s grooves.
Auditionees to "The Wedding Singer" are requested to sing one or two pop/rock songs from the '80s. Bring bio data and recent photographs. Be prepared to dance and sing selections from the musical during callbacks.
For further audition inquiries, contact JonJon Martin at 5575860 or 0916-2644434. Email jonjon@9workstheatrical.com or visit www.9workstheatrical.com.
Young, deeply closeted gay man writes me a heartrending letter sharing the pain and confusion he's been going through as a result of his first brush with, uhm, in his case, still the love that dare not speak its name. The long, candid e-mail is a pure expression of pain that leaves me feeling inadequate. I ask the letter-sender if he'd allow me to share part of his e-mail with the Fabcasters and our friends, many of whom--as far as I can tell--are far advanced in the dating and romance departments and so might have more pertinent advice, alternatives and comforting words to offer, on top of my own puny contributions. That, plus the chance to talk about his story in a light, friendly, welcoming and (can't be helped) fun setting--the better to impart the sense that, hey, kiddo, you're not alone. We get you. The guy says yes! Hence part 1 below. Hope this helps, man. Thanks for trusting us with your story.
Music credits: Pressure by Billy Joel Read 'Em And Weep by Barry Manilow Your Song (instrumental) by Craig Armstrong Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart by Alicia K
For their lifetime achievements and contributions to the professionalization of the Philippine performing arts, theater icons Zeneida Amador and Celeste Legaspi will be given fitting honors as the first recipients of the Natatanging Gawad Buhay!, the lifetime achievement awards conferred by the Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, Inc. (Philstage).
They are joined by Avon Philippines, a long-time corporate supporter of performing arts companies.
The awards will be conferred during the 2009 Gawad Buhay!: The PHILSTAGE Awards for the Performing Arts ceremonies, to be held on Friday, March 26, 2010, 7:30 p.m., at the Tanghalang Aurelio Toletino (CCP Little Theater). The awards show is free admission and open to the public.
The late Bibot, as Amador was fondly called by colleagues and wards in the theater, film and television circles, was the founding artistic director and guiding spirit of Repertory Philippines. She pioneered English theater in the country and was responsible for the professional training of hundreds of theater practitioners. An excellent actor, director and teacher, she was a formidable presence in Philippine theater and was founding chairman of Philstage until her death in 2004.
Legaspi is a multi-awarded singer, actress and theater and music producer who co-founded the pioneering Musical Theater Philippines as its artistic director. Through her efforts, the production of original Filipino musicals flourished for over two decades starting in the 1980s. As founding president of the Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit and Philstage, she was also instrumental in steering the country's only alliance of professional performing arts companies.
Avon Philippines, meanwhile, is being honored as a valued corporate supporter for its sustained provision of free make-up to hundreds of productions of professional and community-based performing arts companies since the early 1970s.
Now on its second year, the Gawad Buhay! is an independently juried peer award and the first-ever industry recognition exclusively for the performing arts. For 2009, ninety-five artists and productions vie for 30 individual and group award categories honoring outstanding achievements in play, musical and dance productions of Philstage member-companies.
The Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, Inc. (Philstage), in cooperation with the Cultural Center of the Philippines, will confer the 2009 “Gawad Buhay!: the PHILSTAGE Awards for the Performing Arts,” on Friday, March 26, 2010, 7:30 p.m., at the Tanghalang Aurelio Toletino (CCP Little Theater).
The awards show is free admission and open to the public.
An independently juried peer award, Gawad Buhay! is the first-ever industry awards exclusively for the performing arts. Ninety-five artists and productions vie for 30 individual and group award categories honoring outstanding achievements in play, musical and dance productions of Philstage member-companies for 2009.
“With the excitement building up after the award’s maiden edition last year, we expect bigger support from the artists, our friends in the media and our audiences for this year’s ceremonies,” said Fernando Josef, Philstage president and artistic director of Tanghalang Pilipino.
The two-hour program will feature excerpts of performances from last year’s nominated productions. Invited to perform are Menchu Lauchengco Yulo and Marvin Ong from Repertory Philippines’ “Sweeney Todd;” Joann Co and Victor Robinson III from PETA’s “Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto;” and Candice Adea and Angel Gabriel from Ballet Philippines’ “Masterworks.”
A distinguished achievement award called “Natatanging Gawad Buhay!” will also be conferred to artists and corporate supporters who have contributed significantly to the professionalization of Philippine Performing Arts.
Philstage is the country’s only organization of professional performing arts companies with regular season programming of repertory development and performance pedagogy training. Its Board of Directors include PETA's Melvin Lee, vice president; Ballet Philippines’ Sandy Hontiveros, secretary; Repertory Philippines' Gidget Tolentino, treasurer; Actors Actors’ Leonardo Lim, Ballet Manila's Susan Macuja, Gantimpala Theater Foundation’s Tony Espejo, Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit’s Mitch Valdes, TRUMPETS' Audie Gemora and PHILSTAGE Executive Director Elmar Beltran Ingles as members.
The Gawad Buhay! 2009 jury is composed of Exie Abola, Walter Ang, Gilbert Cadiz, Ronald Elepaño III, Arvin Ello, Ralph Semino Galan. Rolando Inocencio, Glenn Sevilla Mas, Joy Parohinog, Joey Ting, and Basilio Esteban Villaruz.
OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino, Repertory Philippines Madonna Brava ng Mindanao, Tanghalang Pilipino Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto/Apples From the Desert, Tanghalang Pilipino Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre?, PETA
OUTSTANDING MUSICAL PRODUCTION Ismail at Isabel, PETA Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto, PETA ZsaZsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal, Tanghalang Pilipino
OUTSTANDING DANCE PRODUCTION Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw, Ballet Manila Masterworks, Ballet Philippines Neo-Filipino, Ballet Philippines
OUTSTANDING STAGE DIRECTION Jose Mari Avellana, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Teresa Jamias, Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto/Apples From the Desert Maribel Legarda, Ismail at Isabel Phil Noble, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto Nonon Padilla, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre?
OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SCRIPT Vincent De Jesus, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto Tony Perez, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Rody Vera, Ismail at Isabel
OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY Madonna Brava ng Mindanao, Tanghalang Pilipino Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto, Tanghalang Pilipino Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre?, PETA
OUTSTANDING FEMALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY Liesl Batucan, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Ana Abad Santos, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Ana Abad Santos, A Streetcar Named Desire Shamaine Centenera Buencamino, Madonna Brava ng Mindanao Sherry Lara, Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto/Apples From the Desert
OUTSTANDING MALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY Lex Marcos, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Juliene Mendoza, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Jack Yabut, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre?
OUTSTANDING FEMALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY Mailes Kanapi, A Streetcar Named Desire Peewee O’Hara, Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto/Apples from the Desert
OUTSTANDING MALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY Chrome Cosio, Madonna Brava ng Mindanao Dido Dela Paz, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Jonathan Tadioan, Flores Para Los Muertos
OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL Ismail at Isabel, PETA Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto, PETA ZsaZsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal, Tanghalang Pilipino
OUTSTANDING FEMALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL Caissa Borromeo, I Love You Because Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, Sweeney Todd Eula Valdes, Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal
OUTSTANDING MALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL Nar Cabico, ZsaZsa Zaturnah Ze Muzikal Joey Paras, ZsaZsa Zaturnah Ze Muzikal Audie Gemora, Sweeney Todd
OUTSTANDING FEMALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL Liesl Batucan, Sweeney Todd Kyla Rivera, I Love You Because
OUTSTANDING MALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL Miguel Faustman, The Fantasticks Franco Laurel, Sweeney Todd Marvin Ong, Sweeney Todd
OUTSTANDING LIBRETTO Vincent De Jesus, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY FOR PLAY OR MUSICAL Carlon Matobato, Ismail at Isabel Dudz Terana, Phil Noble and Carlon Matobato, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at ang Limang Milyong Boto
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY FOR DANCE PRODUCTION Augustus Damian III’s Evacuation (in Ballet Philippines' Masterworks) Alice Reyes’ Amada (in Ballet Philippines' Neo-Filipino) Edna Vida’s Ensalada (in Ballet Philippines' Masterworks)
OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE IN A DANCE PRODUCTION Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw, Ballet Manila Masterworks, Ballet Philippines Neo-Filipino, Ballet Philippines
OUTSTANDING FEMALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN DANCE Candice Adea, Neo-Filipino Lisa Macuja Elizalde, Don Quixote Yanti Marduli, Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw
OUTSTANDING MALE LEAD PERFORMANCE IN DANCE Francis Cascano, Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw Biag Gaongen, Neo-Filipino Ronelson Yadao, Neo-Filipino
OUTSTANDING FEMALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN DANCE Marian Faustino, Neo-Filipino
OUTSTANDING MALE FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN DANCE Lucky Vicentino, Neo-Filipino
OUTSTANDING ADAPTATION OR TRANSLATION Alice Reyes, Amada (in Neo-Filipino) Daisy Avellana, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Liza Magtoto, Mga Mansanas sa Disyerto Don Pagusara, Madonna Brava ng Mindanao
OUTSTANDING MUSICAL DIRECTION Jed Balsamo, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Vincent De Jesus, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto Vincent De Jesus, ZsaZsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal Gerard Salonga, Sweeney Todd
OUTSTANDING MUSICAL COMPOSITION Vincent De Jesus, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto Vincent De Jesus, ZsaZsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal Kalayo, Neo-Filipino Mebuyan, Madonna Brava ng Mindanao
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN Salvador Bernal, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Gino Gonzales, Neo-Filipino Jonathan Janolo, Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw Boni Juan, Ismail at Isabel Boni Juan, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto Tuxqs Rutaquio, A Streetcar Named Desire/Flores Para Los Muertos
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN Michael Angelo Albay, Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw Gino Gonzales, Neo-Filipino Gino Gonzales, Sweeney Todd Boni Juan, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN Katsch Catoy, Neo-Filipino Martin Esteva, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Ian Torqueza, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Jimmy Villanueva, Alamat: Si Sibol at Si Gunaw Jonjon Villareal, Si Juan Tamad, Ang Diyablo at Ang Limang Milyong Boto
OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN Lamberto Avellana Jr., A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino Aries Alcayaga, Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Gie Bernardo, Ismail at Isabel
After a brief rest, McVie has resumed his producing duties for our fabcasts, the latest being part 1 (below) of our walang katapusang despedida for Migs. He's been in the US since January, but before he left we had one more chance to give him a riot of a roasting. Join in the fun! A couple more recordings, new ones, are in the pipeline, so keep those earphones ready.
I'll be on blog break from today. Been quite pooped and distracted lately. Will resume once I get the poke again. Yeah, bad metaphor. Speaking of the blues:
Because, as you might have noticed by now if you're a Blogger user like me, hackers using botnets (“armies of infected computers,” says this report) have found a way to breach the standard safeguards against spam comments. Not even the extra requirement to input certain combined letters and numbers to prove there's a real person behind the comment has deterred spam.
Comments of this kind are, thankfully enough, easy to spot: they're often gibberish--a piece of code, some Chinese-character text, or a seemingly innocuous remark about a product along with a link to a site at the end. DON'T click the link--you never know what that might activate. Just delete the comment pronto.
Moderating comments at least allows you to review anything that bids to be published on your blog. Growing jurisprudence in the US suggests blog owners are seen as responsible for any comments they allow to appear on their blogs, which opens the gates to possible libel or defamation suits if you carelessly allow commenters to use your site to attack others. So far I still entertain “anonymous” comments, even those expressing opinions contrary to mine, because I do like to listen to varying ideas--as long as these comments don't cross the line into dirty, abusive language or, worse, character assault. Sorry, but this blog will not be a free-for-all forum.
Spam, though, is another matter. Bot-generated comments have nothing to do with the discussion at hand. I notice that most of them target old or archived blog posts. If you don't moderate or revisit your old posts regularly (who does, really?), chances are your blog's archives are studded by now with spam comments. Go check--they're not only an aggravation, they might also be destructive to your blog.
Just today I trashed 17 spam comments. They never saw the light of day here thanks to the moderating function. But having to be at the receiving end of this seemingly endless barrage can be time-consuming and frustrating. Well, the price to pay, I suppose, for safeguarding the integrity of one's blog.
Cyber crooks are rigging the Internet with booby-trapped blog commentary, chat rooms, email messages and websites, according to a Websense report released Thursday.
Analysis of online threats during the second half of 2009 showed that 81 percent of email was rigged to deliver “malicious” code and 95 percent of comments posted to blog or chat forums were spam or links to nasty payloads.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) poisoning attacks were a favored tactic, piggybacking on hot topics such as celebrity deaths or major disasters to lure people to websites designed to infect computers. [Boldface mine.]
Moderate--and delete! I wonder, though, why Google, which owns Blogger, hasn't developed any new or improved filtering program/widget to address this pesky menace. Or is there one already, and I'm just out of the loop?
What I thought of her performance: [She] was overwhelming in “Master Class,” offering a haunting, crystalline performance that, with barely a raised voice, branded the role of a ruined Maria Callas as hers--spectacularly, indisputably hers--for many moons to come.
In a year of bold star turns, hers had the unique distinction of effacing the image of Gil the movie star, enshrining in its place Gil the consummate theater actress. Lavinia had become La Divina.
For my annual round-up (2008), Master Class, directed by Michael Williams, was in the shortlist of the year's best productions, and its star my choice for Best Actress in a Play: The glamorous actress had a tricky high-wire act to do: play Maria Callas as a character, not an impersonation, while casting off her own outsize persona as the local movies’ eminent queen of mean. She delivered--nay, conquered.
Which is my long-winded, self-absorbed way of saying--if you could buy tickets to the much pricier Cats, you shouldn't find it hard to spare some for this masterful Master Class. Mark these dates.
* * *
The Philippine Opera Company's acclaimed production of Terrence McNally's Tony-winning play, “Master Class,” featuring television, film and stage actress Cherie Gil, will return to the RCBC Theater on July 29-August 15.
POC first staged the show in Manila with Ms. Gil as the legendary soprano in 2008.
The complete dates are July 29, 30, 31, August 1, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14 and 15, 2010; Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances at 8 p.m., and Sunday performances at 3:30 p.m.
For more information or possible fundraisers, call POC 632-8928786. Look for Doris. Or visit www.philippineoperacompany.com.
“Master Class,” which opened on Broadway in 1995, is based on a series of master classes given by the renowned opera singer Maria Callas at the Juilliard School of Music in New York in 1971 and 1972. Callas was the greatest dramatic soprano of her generation and also a controversial figure. Her restless and tempestuous personality often led her into disputes with opera managements and feuds with rival singers. However, she was adored by her fans and was the subject of constant media attention, including gossip about her jet-set life with the wealthy Greek shipowner Aristotle Onassis.
Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice, and great dramatic gifts. An extremely versatile singer, her repertoire ranged from classical opera seria to the bel canto operas of Donizetti, Bellini and Rossini; further, to the works of Verdi and Puccini; and, in her early career, to the music dramas of Wagner. Her remarkable musical and dramatic talents led to her being hailed as La Divina.
Born in New York City and raised by an overbearing mother, she received her musical education in Greece and established her career in Italy. Forced to deal with the exigencies of wartime poverty and with myopia that left her nearly blind on stage, she endured struggles and scandal over the course of her career. She turned herself from a heavy woman into a svelte and glamorous one after a mid-career weight loss, which might have contributed to her vocal decline and the premature end of her career.
The press exulted in publicizing Callas's allegedly temperamental behavior, her supposed rivalry with Renata Tebaldi, and her love affair with Aristotle Onassis. Her dramatic life and personal tragedy have often overshadowed Callas the artist in the popular press. However, her artistic achievements were such that Leonard Bernstein called her “The Bible of opera,” and her influence so enduring that, in 2006, Opera News wrote of her: “Nearly 30 years after her death, she's still the definition of the diva as artist—and still one of classical music's best-selling vocalists.”
Eric Bentley: What is great theatre? The component parts are brains, good taste, fine craftsmanship, high purpose, and so forth and so on, but the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and comes to us as a single impression which is at once intellectual satisfaction and emotional entrancement.
Intellectual satisfaction and emotional entrancement. Seen one with those two qualities lately?
Inihahandog ng Dulaang Laboratoryo (Theater 200) ang “Balintuna: Dalawang Palabas ng Kamatayan” (“Ang Seremonya” at “Balik-tanaw”).
Ang “Balik-Tanaw” ay hango sa orihinal na dulang “Happy Days” ni Samuel Beckett, kwento ng tatlong babaeng naghahanap ng dahilan sa kanilang kinalagakan.
“Ang Seremonya” naman ay salin ng dulang “The Maids” ni Jean Genet. Tungkol sa magkapatid na sina Soledad at Clara, kapwa mga katulong na naninilbihan sa kanilang senyorang may tamis-pait na asal sa kanila.
“Ang Balintuna: Dalawang Palabas ng Kamatayan” ay isang kolaborasyon mula sa anim na magtatapos sa kursong Sining Panteatro ng Unibersidad ng Pilipinas. Itatampok sina Carlo Pagunaling (Disenyo Pamproduksyon), Loren Rivera (Disenyo ng Ilaw), Angienelie Jose (Tagapamahala ng Produksyon) at sina Lucky de Mesa, Hazel Maranan, Cinderella Mayo (mga magtatanghal) sa ilalim ng direksyon ni Paul Santiago.
Ang dula ay itatanghal sa Marso 18 (7 p.m.), Marso 19 (7 p.m.), Marso 20 (10 a.m. at 3 p.m.), Marso 21 (3 p.m. at 7 p.m.), 2010, Teatro Hermogenes Ylagan, Faculty Center, UP Diliman, Quezon City.
Admission is free. Para sa karagdagang impormasyon, tawagan o i-text si Angienelie Jose 0927-3540045.
Now in its third year, My Talent returns this summer to hold performing arts and modeling workshops at Eastwood City, with the theme “My Talent Ka!”.
Workshops include Musical Theater, Street Dance, Voice, Pop Concert Performance, Musical Instruments (guitar, piano, violin and percussion) and Modeling. Classes are for kids, teens and adults.
Theater stalwart and “Talentadong Pinoy” talent scout Audie Gemora will teach Pop Concert Performance. Performing artists Sheenly Vee Gener,Dorothea Maria Marabut and Francis Matheu will handle workshops for children. Australian Conservatoire of Ballet member Arnie Umayan and ADLIBB Street Dancing Ensemble member Patrick Escolin will teach Show Dance and Street Dance, respectively.
Meanwhile, UST Conservatory of Music alumni Jemuel Victorino and Von Ryan Yu will facilitate voice classes. Supermodel Rissa Mananquil will once again teach modeling. Three-time Palanca awardee Niel De Mesa will write an original musical for the teen and adult Musical Theater classes.
All courses will be conducted at My Talent Place, 2nd Floor Athena Bldg., Eastwood City, from April 5 to May 30, 2010. For inquiries, call 3590497, 3845578, 5713485, 0922-5916060 and 0929-5626931. Or visit www.mytalentco.multiply.com. Discounts available for early-bird enrollments.
Before Up In the Air, before the string of honors (some 16 citations!) that culminated in an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her fantastic work in that film (I was rooting for her over Mo'nique, and I wanted Up In the Air to win at least Best Screenplay for Jason Reitman), before even the Twilight (non-)Saga, Anna Kendrick was a Broadway baby.
She was, in fact, a Tony nominee at age 12, for the musical High Society--making her “the third-youngest nominee ever after 10-year-old Frankie Michaels and 11-year-old Daisy Eagan, who both went on to win” [Wikipedia].
If you're a Broadway-musical junkie like me and you've seen the concert My Favorite Broadway: The Leading Ladies on DVD, then the name Anna Kendrick would have rung a bell. In this 1998 extravaganza, ranged against the likes of Liza Minnelli, Jennifer Holliday, Marin Mazzie, Audra McDonald, Bebe Neuwirth, Elaine Stritch and other musical-theater giants, Kendrick, all of 13 years old, held her own with a winning number called Life Upon the Wicked Stage.
The conceit was, this song from the landmark musical Showboat, sung by a dreamy ingenue, was juxtaposed with a gaggle of cynical, foul-mouthed, rum-addled bar women--the Kit Kat Girls from Cabaret--whose job it was to mock the naivete of the girl and her song. Throughout, Kendrick, already a lovely presence, was poised, charming--blissfully “in the zone,” so to speak. After watching her in this number, you knew she was a bright young talent bound for bigger things.
The next time the name Anna Kendrick came up, it was in the 2003 movie musical Camp, which had a more radical conceit: a summer retreat for kids who ate and breathed theater, especially musical theater of the Sondheim kind (there IS a camp like it in the US). Naturally, these were often the school outcasts--the young artistes, the sensitive ones, the gay and fey (or suspected to be), the unconventional kids who marched to a different beat. So you get a scene where, on the bus, instead of the teens horsing around to--oh, I don't know, Lady GaGa or Miley Cyrus--they're collectively warbling Losing My Mind instead.
Kendrick plays Fritzi, a mousy, needy girl always bossed around by her friend Jill, a girl of imperious self-assurance who throws her weight around and schemes to grab the best roles. In a climactic scene, as Jill is about to launch into her showcase performance--The Ladies Who Lunch, from Sondheim's Company--Fritzi, fed up at her shabby treatment, sabotages the young diva's moment by marching up the stage, dragging her into the wings and finishing the number with a fierceness and sophistication never seen before. Kendrick is hilarious and dazzling in the part.
Have you seen Up In the Air? Go buy the DVD if you have to. Kendrick's breakdown scene in the airport alone is worth it. If she wants to, she'd make a great comic actress. But here's hoping she finds time to return to the stage and sing again soon.
Isay Alvarez, Robert Sena and Tricia Amper-Jimenez revisit the longest-running Filipino musical of the '80s--and the show that launched their careers in musical theater--with a medley of choice numbers performed during the Pasinaya CCP Open House Festival last February. Spotlight Artists Centre, the performing arts school run by Robert and Isay, has announced it will restageMagsimula Ka! in November this year.
More about Magsimula Ka!here, plus audio excerpts.
Atlantis Productions' blockbuster production of "Avenue Q" returns to the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati City, from March 12 to 27. Rachel Alejandro is back to reprise her role as Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut, while new cast member Calvin Millado is stepping in as Brian.
Completing the cast are Felix Rivera (Princeton), Aiza Seguerra (Gary Coleman), Frenchie Dy (Christmas Eve), Joel Trinidad (Trekkie Monster), and Thea Tadiar (Trekkie Monster's right hand)--all of whom have been with the show since its first Manila run in 2007.
After two successful re-runs, the show played a series of equally well-received performances at the Esplanade Theatre in Singapore. "Avenue Q" has music and lyrics by Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez, and book by Jeff Whitty. Its original Broadway production won the 2004 Tony award for Best Musical.
Directed by Bobby Garcia and Chari Arespacochaga, the Manila production features set design by Mio Infante, lighting design by Jonsy Reyes and puppet design by Samuel Fuentes based on the original Broadway production.
Call Atlantis Productions 8927078 or 8401187 for tickets. Visit www.atlantisproductionsinc.com
Notice to Senior Citizens displayed at the counter of Taco Bell Gateway; picture taken Thursday last week.
Thought balloon no. 1 Uy, ayos 'to a. Buti pa si Mayor Belmonte, me effort to inform senior citizens about their privileges under the law. Very clear--“20 percent discount, and special discount of five percent on basic and prime commodities.” Tapos me warning pa na “Violation is subject to fine and imprisonment.” Cool. Dapat lang talaga paalalahanan ang mga establishments to comply with this, and to inform their customers in such a way na mababasa agad, and easily, ng ating mga lolo at lola what they're entitled to. Good move, Mayor!
Thought balloon no. 2 Ay, me picture! At nearly one-third of the small space. Teka, nangangampanya ba siya o nag-reremind? Kailangan ba talaga me mukhaniya? Di pa ba sapat his signature below the notice? Di ba susunod sa batas ang Taco Bell without his smiling face accompanying the warning? (Warning pero smiling--ang weird.) O di kaya mas mataas ang compliance rate pag sinamahan ng fez niya? And what's this? Additional penalty! “Non-posting/displaying of this notice is subject to Five Thousand Pesos (P5,000) fine...” Wow. Nampucha. So every single one of the thousands of bars, stores, restaurants and commercial places in QC have to display this notice with his picture on it? And their customers by the tens of thousands have no choice but to be confronted by it every time they transact something? Sus, ginuu, wala palang kawala.E di ba running for congressman ang mokong na'to? Leche. Electioneering disguised as public service lang pala. Style mo, Mayor, vulok. Hmp, asan na ba burrito ko, makakain na nga.
Bossa Meets Madonna. Bossa Meets Air Supply. Bossa Meets Whitney. I've also seen Bossa Meets The Beatles, Bossa Meets Reggae, Bossa Meets New Wave, Bossa Meets Broadway, Bossa Meets Andrew Lloyd Webber. Heaven forbid there's a Bossa Meets Sondheim coming up, but at the rate this sub-genre keeps cannibalizing the world's collective songbook--flattening, distorting, draining the life and originality out of good songs and real music and homogenizing them into aural wallpaper--who knows? Bossa Meets Hard Metal, anyone? Bossa Meets Kundiman? A trend catches the barest of fires, it has to be milked to the bone--the record companies' homage to the concept of reductio ad absurdum. After their bloodless, mechanical facsimile of the sleek Brazilian beat has gutted the entire musical stockpile, it might even turn on itself for the ultimate act of self-fellatio: Bossa Meets Bossa. Now, that would be interesting. Look what you've done, Sitti.
Aww, what have they done to one of my favorite Cinemalaya films? Bi now gay later? I can't stop giggling. The demented copywriter-movie pirate behind this cover might not have realized it, but his invented tagline is the perfect shorthand for the kind of dodge many young Pinoy gay men resort to these days. Or haven't you noticed--on MIRC the Gay-Manila chatroom is long gone, replaced by Bi-Manila. In this town no one's gay anymore at a young age, only bi. Meaning, of course, not that they swing both ways (yuckiedooders), only that they're more butch, “straight-acting”--or they think they are. There you have it: evolving sexual constructs in a witty nutshell. Even in pirated form, Jay deserves better packaging and a more germane tagline (no, the movie has nothing to do with bi-to-gay transitions). But this one's a keeper.
