The start of something big

For the Art & Culture section of the Philippine Star, 18 February 2009.

Photos by Hilda Abola of the My Manila photoblog.



In May last year I wrote about the Philippine Legitimate Stage Artists Group, or Philstage, and its effort to become the first awards-giving body focused solely on the performing arts. Well, these efforts have borne fruit. This past Wednesday, the 18th of February, Philstage held its 2008 Gawad Buhay! Awards for the Performing Arts at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The austere but elegant program was well-attended, and judging by the excitement it generated among the member companies, I expect an even more enthusiastic response in the years ahead.

Such a response is crucial, since there were moments last year, the first year of the awards, when I thought the group’s resolve seemed to flag. Mine did, too. Now I can say it: I served on the jury panel that chose the performers and creatives named in the quarterly citations and drew up the list of year-end awardees. We started as a fairly large group, but the demands of trying to watch all the productions caught up with some of us, and by the end of the year we found ourselves reduced to a band of ten. So I couldn’t help but chuckle when Fernando “Nanding” Josef, artistic director of Tanghalang Pilipino and president of Philstage, commended the jurors in the opening remarks for serving “na walang bayad, walang pamasahe, at walang pang-merienda.”

Feeling the excitement in the Little Theater that evening, hearing the theater practitioners cheer for their fellows, seeing their sheer joy whether they ended up taking home trophies or not, helped dispel the gloom in my mind. There were times last year when I wondered what I had gotten myself into. Wednesday night I felt blessed, and ultimately grateful, to have been a part of it all. Here’s hoping the awards, now a year old, have a long and illustrious future.

My thanks to Philstage for inviting me aboard and to the individual member-companies for their unstinting hospitality. And my warmest congratulations to the winners of the first Gawad Buhay!

Here is the official press release from Philstage:

* * * * *
PETA and Tanghalang Pilipino plays dominate PHILSTAGE’s Gawad Buhay!

With four major awards each, Skin Deep (a production of the Philippine Educational Theater Association, or PETA), Golden Child, and Kudeta (both by Tanghalang Pilipino) won the most production, technical, and performance awards at the 2008 Gawad Buhay!, the PHILSTAGE Awards for the Performing Arts, held on February 18 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino. Ballet Philippines’ La Revolucion Filipina, Repertory Philippines’ Hamlet, and Tanghalang Pilipino’s Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna each took home three trophies.

The bare stage moments before the show began.

Skin Deep, a musical comedy on ordinary people’s search for beauty and happiness, got the jury’s nod for outstanding musical production, original libretto (Vincent De Jesus), and male and female lead performances in a musical play (Robert Seña and May Bayot). Golden Child, winner for outstanding production of a full-length play, stage direction (Loy Arcenas), ensemble performance, and set design (Loy Arcenas), depicts the conflicts of introducing modern changes to a traditional Chinese household. Kudeta, a hilarious take on a coup that topples a country's president, won for outstanding translation or adaptation (George De Jesus III), lighting design (Dennis Marasigan), set design (Tuqxs Rutaquio), and featured male performance in a play (Bong Cabrera).

Among the big winners of individual awards were Floy Quintos, for Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna, which won for outstanding production of a one-act play and original play; and Vincent de Jesus, whose work on Skin Deep and Batang Rizal (PETA) won for outstanding original libretto and musical direction.

Biag Gaongen performs an excerpt from Ballet Philippines’ ‘La Revolucion Filipina.’

The first-ever industry awards exclusive to the performing arts, Gawad Buhay! was juried by an independent panel of critics, scholars, artists, and theater enthusiasts who were deputized to watch all productions of Philstage member-companies for the entire year. Outstanding individual and group achievements in various artistic and technical aspects of play, musical, and dance productions and performances are honored based on quarterly citations drawn up by the jury.

In his acceptance speech for outstanding original play for Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna, playwright-director Floy Quintos expressed appreciation of the performing arts’ unique quality as a form of creative expression. “We have become the source of talents of other industries like film and television.”

The PETA ensemble performing an excerpt from Batang Rizal.

CCP President Nestor Jardin, who was one of the awards presenters, praised the high quality of productions by Philstage member-companies. “There are many of these, and there can be no better proof of this than in the next category,” he said, referring to the thirteen nominees for outstanding ensemble performance.

“I am very happy that we are having this award while I am still dancing,” enthused Camille Ordinario-Joson who won for outstanding featured performer in a dance production for her work on Ballet Philippines’ Latin Heat.

The mostly theater-practitioner crowd cheered on approvingly as Jose Mari Avellana’s name was announced by presenter Gary Lim as winner for outstanding male lead performance in a play. Visibly moved, Avellana thanked the theater community and exhorted them to keep striving for quality and continue the traditions of professionalism and collegiality in the profession.

Willy Casero amuses the crowd as Mayor Rapcu in an excerpt from PETA’s ‘Batang Rizal.’

Philstage President Fernando Josef, concurrent artistic director of Tanghalang Pilipino, expressed elation over the participation of a large number of nominees. “They came with friends and family,” he said. “This is a historic event as we are witnessing the maturity of an industry that responds to audiences, artists, and society.”

Directed by Dennis Marasigan and produced by Elmar Beltran Ingles, the awards ceremonies featured moving performances by Ballet Philippines’ Biag Gaongen, winner for outstanding male lead performance in a dance production (La Revolucion Filipina and Latin Heat), and the cast of Batang Rizal.

Winners, all : Front row, from left to right: Fernando Josef, Floy Quintos, Vincent de Jesus, Robert Seña, Shamaine Centenera Buencamino, Biag Gaongen, and Philstage Executive Director Elmar Ingles. Back row: Paolo Perez of Tanghalang Pilipino, Liesl Batucan, Susan Macuja of Ballet Manila, Dennis Marasigan, Jethro Joaquin, Bong Cabrera, Melvin Lee of PETA, Jose Mari Avellana, CB Garrucho, Max Luna III of Ballet Philippines, Camille Ordinario-Joson, and Alan Hineline of Ballet Philippines.

The categories, winners, and nominees:

Outstanding production of a full-length play: Golden Child (Tanghalang Pilipino). Other nominees: Batang Rizal, PETA. Hamlet, Repertory Philippines. Kudeta, Tanghalang Pilipino.

Outstanding production of a one-act play: Ang Kalungkutan ng Mga Reyna (Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4). Other nominees: Ang Bayot, ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal sa Isang Nakababagot na Paghihintay sa Kanto ng Lanao del Norte, Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4. Ellas Inocentes, Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4. Three Sisters: A Noh Play, Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4.

Outstanding musical production: Skin Deep (PETA). Other nominee: Altar Boyz, Repertory Philippines.

Outstanding dance production: La Revolucion Filipina, Ballet Philippines. Other nominees: Latin Heat, Ballet Philippines. New Beginnings, Ballet Philippines.

Outstanding stage direction: Loy Arcenas (Golden Child). Other nominees: Chari Arrespacochaga, Altar Boyz. Nor Domingo, Skin Deep. Jose Estrella, Three Sisters: A Noh Play. Floy Quintos, Ang Kalungkutan ng Mga Reyna. Floy Quintos, Kudeta. Tuxqs Rutaquio, Ellas Inocentes. Dudz Teraña, Batang Rizal.

Outstanding original choreography: Agnes Locsin (La Revolucion Filipina). Other nominees: Bam Damian, Latin Heat. Alan Hineline, New Beginnings. Alden Lugnasin, Latin Heat. Max Luna III, New Beginnings. Jason Zamora, Altar Boyz.

Outstanding original play: Floy Quintos’ Ang Kalungkutan ng Mga Reyna. Other nominees: Batang Rizal, Christine Bellen. Ang Bayot, ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal . . ., Rogelio Braga. Ellas Inocentes, Layeta Bucoy.

Outstanding ensemble performance: the cast of Golden Child (Tanghalang Pilipino). Other nominees: Altar Boyz, Repertory Philippines. Ang Bayot, ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal . . ., Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4. Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street, Tanghalang Pilipino. Batang Rizal, PETA. Coppelia, Ballet Philippines. Ellas Inocentes, Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4. Hamlet, Repertory Philippines. Kudeta, Tanghalang Pilipino. La Revolucion Filipina, Ballet Philippines. Latin Heat, Ballet Philippines. Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang, PETA. New Beginnings, Ballet Philippines. Skin Deep, PETA.

Outstanding male lead performance in a play: Jose Mari Avellana (Tuesdays with Morrie). Other nominees: Arthur Acuña, Golden Child. Dido de la Paz, Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street. Joe Gruta, Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street. Mario O'Hara, Kudeta. Joey Paras, Ang Bayot, ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal . . . . Arnold Reyes, Ang Bayot, ang Meranao, at ang Habal-Habal . . . . Jonathan Tadioan, Pamantasang Hirang, Tanghalang Pilipino/Virgin Labfest 4.

Outstanding female lead performance in a play: Shamaine Centenera Buencamino (Ang Kalungkutan ng Mga Reyna). Other nominees: Lovely Balili, Ellas Inocentes. Liesl Batucan, Golden Child. Tina Chilip, Golden Child. Jenessa Roque, Ellas Inocentes. Irma Adlawan-Marasigan, Golden Child.

Outstanding male lead performance in a musical: Robert Seña (Skin Deep). Other nominees: Red Concepcion, Altar Boyz. Juliene Mendoza, EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson (Tanghalang Pilipino). Jett Pangan, EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson.

Outstanding female lead performance in a musical: May Bayot (Skin Deep). Other nominees: Isay Alvarez, Skin Deep. Gail Guanlao Billones, Skin Deep.

Outstanding male lead performance in a dance production: Biag Gaongen (La Revolucion Filipina and Latin Heat).

Outstanding female lead performance in a dance production: Lisa Macuja Elizalde (Le Corsaire, Ballet Manila).

Outstanding featured performance in a dance production: no nomination.

Outstanding male featured performance in a play: Bong Cabrera (Kudeta). Other nominees: Riki Benedicto, Kudeta. Willy Casero, Batang Rizal. Nor Domingo, Tosca (PETA). Raffy Tejada, Tosca.

Outstanding female featured performance in a play: Cris Villonco (Hamlet). Other nominee: Mailes Kanapi, Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street.

Outstanding featured performance in a dance production: Camille Ordinario-Joson (Latin Heat).

Outstanding original libretto: Vincent de Jesus (Skin Deep). Other nominee: Vincent de Jesus, Batang Rizal.

Outstanding translation/adaptation: George de Jesus III (Kudeta). Other nominee: Dennis Marasigan, Golden Child.

Outstanding musical direction: Vincent de Jesus (Batang Rizal). Other nominee: Jojo Malferrari, Altar Boyz.

Outstanding set design: Loy Arcenas (Golden Child) and Tuxqs Rutaquio (Kudeta). Other nominees: Mel Bernardo, Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang (PETA). Gino Gonzales, New Beginnings. Mio Infante, Coppelia. Mio Infante, La Revolucion Filipina.

Outstanding costume design: Faust Peneyra (Hamlet). Other nominees: Ron Alfonso, Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang. Gino Gonzales, Golden Child. Jonathan Janolo, Tatlong Kuwento ni Lola Basyang, Ballet Manila. Victor Ursabia, La Revolucion Filipina.

Outstanding lighting design: Dennis Marasigan (Kudeta). Other nominees: Katsch Catoy, La Revolucion Filipina. Martin Esteva, Hamlet. Barbi Tan-Tiongco, Golden Child.

Outstanding sound design: Jethro Joaquin (Hamlet). Other nominees: Janice Dee, Kudeta. Jethro Joaquin, EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson. Shima Takesi, Tosca. Gidget Tolentino, Altar Boyz. J. Victor Villareal, Golden Child.

Philstage groups together the country’s leading and established performing arts companies which include Actors Actors Inc. (AAI), Ballet Manila (BM), Ballet Philippines (BP), Gantimpala Theater Foundation (GTF), Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM), Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), Repertory Philippines (REP), Tanghalang Pilipino, and the Triumphant Peoples’ Evangelical Theater Society (Trumpets).

And now for something completely different 11

On the heels of yesterday's weirdness comes this new discovery, a trailer for an upcoming movie titled Romeo & Juliet vs. the Living Dead.

O happy chainsaw!



(Hat tip to Yvette.)

The continuing saga

In previous posts (the abrupt version here and the lengthier explanatory one here) I said that I would stop writing about theater or at least watch less and write less. I also said that I've applied for support from my university, Ateneo de Manila, through the Loyola Schools (formerly the College of Arts and Sciences) grants for research and creative work. I sent two proposals, one to finish writing a book of creative nonfiction pieces (my MA creative writing thesis, essentially) and publish it, the other to watch plays and publish reviews of them in The Philippine Star.

All proposals for the grants are due in November. A few weeks ago the committee deciding on the grants emailed me to ask for more information on the first proposal (the nonfiction book). I then asked if the second proposal had been denied. It was. I emailed a reply expressing my disappointment (which is what the explanatory post was for).

Here's what has happened since.

The committee representative replied, saying that, yes, they don't think writing for a newspaper is less intellectually demanding than writing for a scholarly journal, except that there is no peer review. If the committee backed me with a grant, the school would, in effect, approve of what I were to write without having the opportunity to put what I write through peer review. In short, they would have to take it on trust that my writing is scholarly. A fair point, I think. She did also say that my proposal was unusual; they hadn't seen anything like in at least three years.

So I took up Karen's suggestion in the comments to that last post and emailed, asking, what if I were to put the columns together in a book? Here is in part what I wrote:

I don't know if this is too late, but would it make a difference to my theater reviews proposal if I rewrote it to say that I intend to publish the reviews in a book at a later time? Not sure when. I would think that I would need some 40 to 50 reviews before they are worth putting together in a book. I have 14 reviews of 24 productions. Another 26 articles this year and I will have 40 at the end. (In my proposal I propose to write 25.) Perhaps I can also add several essays on larger topics, such as the current state of Philippine theater.

If the proposal can still be considered with these changes, please let me know and I will make the revisions.

A few days later came the response: the committee is concerned that play reviews are by nature "dated" and are better printed in newspapers or magazines rather than books. The rejection of my proposal was reiterated.

And so I wrote, a little peeved:

I don't understand why it's a concern that the reviews might be "dated." They will be dated only if we're thinking of ticket sales. The performing arts are, by their nature, ephemeral. Writing about them is one way of documenting a performance, writing which becomes a valuable resource to future writers and researchers of the art.

This problem of datedness hasn't stopped major critics from compiling their reviews of specific plays. Last year I read Millennial Stages: Essays and Reviews 2001–2005, a wonderful book by the preeminent theater scholar Robert Brustein, founder of the Yale Drama School. The long middle section is a compilation of reviews of some forty plays in some twenty-five essays. The first section contains essays on contemporary issues in theater; the third contains reviews of books on theater and profiles of important stage personalities (like Marlon Brando). In his more than forty years of writing on theater, Brustein has published compilations of his play reviews. Other critics such as Richard Gilman and Walter Kerr have done the same. So why is this a problem for us?

I was getting a little unnerved. The fact that I had to make the above explanation didn't sit well with me.

Then I got another email, this time on my first proposal (on the book of nonfiction). I had said, in my addendum, that I wanted to write, among other things, on memory. The committee representative said they wanted further elaboration, to wit: what "framework(s)" will I use, and what "literature" will I cite? The concern is that the works will be "largely personal reflections and accounts."

Well, that was it for me. I wrote back:

I do not understand the concerns of the [Research] Council. You ask for "frameworks" that I will use or refer to. Do you ask the same question of poets or fictionists who also write about memory? I do not approach my literary nonfiction as if it was academic research; I do not begin with a framework then search. The act is creative; I search first, then an insight comes to me. I do not begin knowing where to look or what I'm looking for. Otherwise, why write? The creative act of writing is an act of discovery. I recognize what I'm looking for only in the act of looking for it. To a scientist, this may be nonsense. To me, it makes perfect sense.

Besides, what is this problem with my work possibly being "largely personal reflections or accounts"? Has no one on the council ever read literary or creative nonfiction? I am not a twelve-year-old with a blog. My largely personal reflections and accounts are far different in quality. The samples I submitted to you — "Many Mansions," which won first prize for the Essay in English at the 2000 Palanca Awards; "A Soundtrack to the Eighties," which was published in the Philippines Free Press; and "Pilgrim of the Healing Hand," published in the maiden issue of UP's Likhaan, the only piece of creative nonfiction that merited publication (the other two pieces of nonfiction were criticism) — are all deeply personal.

If the council believes that my writing is not good enough to be backed by a university grant, then fine. If the problem is a lack of quality, then all right. But if the council believes that my writing doesn't deserve a grant because it is mostly personal, then that is a problem, because in effect the council has rejected most kinds of literary nonfiction before they can even be offered for consideration. (Question: has the council ever rejected proposals for poetry or fiction because they were "largely personal reflections or accounts"?)

I have nothing to add to what I have submitted to the council. Moreover, this exchange of emails over my two proposals has dismayed me and made we wonder if the council appreciates or even understands the kind of creative work that I do.

That was Thursday night. Friday I received a civil email from her thanking me for my "candid" response and saying she would take up my concerns with the committee.

And this is where things stand. I thought the book proposal was a good one; my chairperson endorsed it and even added a note explaining creative nonfiction as a literary genre. So I thought it was the second one I would have to fight for. Now I'm not sure what my chances are for either.

In any case, this will all be resolved soon. The grants are announced in February, at the same time that awards are given out for outstanding scholarly and creative work of the past year. I will know where I stand, what the next twelve to eighteen months or so will look like, and what kind of writing I will be able to do aside from my schoolwork.

Again, thanks for your concern.

A “delightful comedy of manners” with “all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action”

I don't usually mind classic works of literature being updated or adapted into new mediums every now and then, but this case is just a little ridiculous: a publisher has come out with a new version of Jane Austen's most famous and well-loved novel and given it a twist. The title of the new work says it all: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

The cover:



The plot summary:

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies features the original text of Jane Austen's beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton — and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers — and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield as Elizabeth wages war against hordes of flesh-eating undead. Complete with 20 illustrations in the style of C. E. Brock (the original illustrator of Pride and Prejudice), this insanely funny expanded edition will introduce Jane Austen's classic novel to new legions of fans.

Oh dear. I wonder what the inevitable movie version will be like.

(Hat tip to Paul.)

Paradoxically speaking

Isagani Cruz wrote a short but trenchant post titled "Paradox of Philippine education" a few days ago. It speaks for itself:

I have often wondered why Filipinos who speak bad English, who have no doctorates in English language or linguistics, who have never lived or worked in the USA or UK, who have never taught in the public schools, or whose children do not study in public schools are the most vocal advocates of the exclusive use of the English language as the medium of instruction in all our public schools. On the other hand, Filipino language scholars with American doctorates in linguistics, who speak English as good as if not better than Americans, who have published books and scholarly articles in English in international journals, or who have been in the Department of Education and know the problems of public education firsthand are unanimous in opposing such stupid moves. Only in the Philippines!

Indeed.

Moved to another busy intersection

John Nery's blog Newsstand, that is. The new site is here. The look is cleaner and better organized, methinks. A recent post is an Inquirer column on the untimely death — is there ever a timely one? — of a Jesuit friend, Joey Fermin. An excerpt from early in his meditation:

Too young, much too young, many mourners at the wake murmured.  Maybe. Being in the same age group, I would certainly like to think so. But I doubt if “F,” as we called our classmate since high school, would have agreed; a priest for only 10 short years, he knew death’s dearest demographic. Every day is a slaughter of the innocents; to these victims, 46 would have seemed a ripe old age.

“Would have agreed.” “Would have seemed.” In these phrases I hear the wistful music of the conditional. They remind me of a line from the essential Zbigniew Herbert, who wrote, very much in passing, about “the beauty of the subjunctive.”

Thoughtful and elegant, as usual.

By way of an explanation

In my previous post I said I was giving up reviewing plays because of a lack of "institutional support." As a way of elaborating on the point, here is an excerpt from an email I wrote to a member of the committee that gives out grants for research and creative work in my university.

The context: I submitted two grant proposals in November. Last week this committee member emailed me to ask for additional information regarding the first proposal, about finishing a book of creative nonfiction. I replied and asked if my other proposal, a request for a de-load in order to watch plays and write reviews, had been rejected. She said yes, because "writing columns for a newspaper" was not covered by the grants. Part of my response:

I expected it, though I'm still disappointed. I'm disappointed that the committee doesn't see a difference between writing a column and writing a review (which means actually going to watch a performance then writing about it intelligently). I suppose this is a gray area now, what with the acceptance of creative work in the grants program being a fairly recent phenomenon. A piece aimed at publication in a newspaper is different from one meant for an academic journal. But it's hard for me to believe that the intellectual demands are different. And certainly the readership reached by a widely read newspaper is not that of academic journals. I would expect that a piece in a newspaper would have a stronger impact on the theater community, both practitioners and viewers. The knowledge "created" would then have more utility in this medium. If we believe that the latter venue (the academic journal) is superior, perhaps it is because we are looking at creative work with the optics of science, a point of view which doesn't seem fair.

Reading that paragraph in my previous post in which I announce the end of my reviewing, I realize that I worded it too dramatically. I was probably still stung by the bad news.

What I meant to say was, I can't spend the time I did in 2008 watching all the plays that I did (65 performances of more than 50 productions) without some kind of support from my school. I am, after all, a full-time teacher, and this profession is not one I would like to give up soon. The demands of playgoing are high; the time and effort of scheduling, traveling, and watching are a significant addition to the time I spend on my work. There's been a palpable deterioration in the quality of my schoolwork since I began covering theater. And though I watched a lot of productions last year, I didn't write on many of them. My output of reviews strikes me as paltry considering the number I watched.

In short, I'm doing both things in a half-assed way. I'm not being fair to either. So though I love both, one must go. (And I haven't mentioned yet my creative writing, of both nonfiction and fiction, which is important to me and which came to a standstill when the current schoolyear began, plus a sideline that helps me earn a little more.)

Which is why I've decided to give up trying to be a regular theater critic (and Philstage juror too). This doesn't mean that I will stop watching. Only, that I will be much more selective in my viewing. I will still write when I can, but I make no promises.

I hope this makes things clearer. Thanks to everyone who expressed concern. Really, I appreciate it.

Curtain calls : the best of theater 2008

For the Art and Culture section of the Philippine Star, 26 January 2009.

Update: The article did not come out in the January 19 issue, as I expected it would. Perhaps next week.

Update, January 26: The article appears in today's edition of the Star. I made some changes to the announcements in the last four paragraphs, and the title as well.



Finally: here is a belated list of what I thought was the best of the 2008 theater season. But first, a digression: My attempt at being a theater critic proved to be more trying than I had imagined. I caught 65 performances of more than 50 productions but still ended up missing significant ones: Cinderella by Broadway Asia Entertainment; A Christmas Carol by Repertory Philippines, the only Rep show I missed; Atlantis Productions’ Hairspray as well as their restaging of Avenue Q (though I caught last year’s show); Gantimpala Theater Foundation’s Hiblang Abo, Kanser, El Filibusterismo, and Ang Pagong at ang Matsing; and the majority of the plays at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’s annual festival of new work, the Virgin Labfest (I saw the three best plays from 2007 as well as four new ones out of the twenty or so that were staged). Naturally, these productions won’t show up in my list below. The omissions represent the shortcomings not of these shows but of me as a critic.

Again I am reminded of an essential quality of the performing arts: live performance. This is its strength and its weakness. To the viewer the most important requirement is this: You need to be there. Several times this year, I was not. My apologies to the concerned companies.

With these gaps noted, here are my thoughts on the best of theater in the year just passed:

OUTSTANDING PLAY: Tanghalang Pilipino’s Golden Child (by David Henry Hwang, dir. Loy Arcenas) was a wonderful production where everything went right: an excellent script, astute direction and staging, and a rousing ensemble performance. Other notables: Atang (Dulaang UP; by Floy Quintos, dir. Alexander Cortez); Kudeta! (Tanghalang Pilipino; by Mustapha Matura, trans. George de Jesus III, dir. Floy Quintos); Master Class (Philippine Opera Company; by Terence McNally, dir. Michael Williams); Batang Rizal (PETA, by Christine Bellen, dir. Dudz Teraña); ? Two by Ionesco (Tanghalang Ateneo; by Eugene Ionesco, adapted and directed by Ricardo Abad and Baby Jay Crisostomo); Slipped Disc: A Study of the Upright Walk (Goethe-Institut Manila; by Ingrid Lausund, trans. Henning Bochert, dir. Lito Casaje).

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY (FEMALE): In Master Class, Cherie Gil played legendary opera diva Maria Callas with the supreme confidence of someone who knows no one has ever been better than her. Last year, no one was. Three came close, though: Irma Adlawan-Marasigan as the intransigent first wife in Golden Child; Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino as the old Atang in Atang; and Mailes Kanapi as the wandering soul in Marisol, a project of the Philippine–American Education Foundation and UP–Diliman. Other notables: Kanapi again, in Slipped Disc; Wenah Nagales (“The Lover” [one act], Tanghalang Pilipino Actors Company); Tina Chilip (Golden Child); Ayen Munji-Laurel (Atang).

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY (MALE): The first major production of the year, Tuesdays with Morrie by Repertory Philippines, gave us the performance of the year: José Mari Avellana rendered the terminally ill professor’s increasing physical decrepitude with dignity, humor, and gentle humanity. Mario O’Hara’s turn as the brash dictator in Kudeta! was a close second. Other notables: Richard Cunanan (Slipped Disc); Nonie Buencamino (Otelo: Ang Moro ng Venecia, Tanghalang Ateneo); Joe Gruta, Dido dela Paz, Lou Veloso (Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street, Tanghalang Pilipino); Art Acuña (Golden Child); Jonathan Tadioan (“Antigone” [one act]; Tanghalang Pilipino Actors Company).

OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY (FEMALE): Cris Villonco’s haunting Ophelia was the emotional heart of Repertory Philippines’s modernized Hamlet. Other notables: Bituin Escalante (Atang).

OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A PLAY (MALE): Bong Cabrera’s naive but well-meaning jail guard played perfectly against O’Hara’s deposed dictator in Kudeta!. Other notables: Nicco Manalo (Marisol); Nor Domingo and Raffy Tejada (Tosca, PETA); Wylie Casero (Batang Rizal).

A visceral and thrilling meditation on love and war, by a first-time director no less, ‘Orosman at Zafira’ is my pick for overall production of the year.

OUTSTANDING MUSICAL: Dulaang UP’s Orosman at Zafira (by Francisco Baltazar, adapted by Anril Tiatco, dir. Dexter Santos, music by Carol Bello) demonstrated what good may come from the fusion of old and new in words, costume, dance, and music. A visceral and thrilling meditation on love and war, by a first-time director no less, this thoroughly original work is my pick for overall production of the year. Other notables: Altar Boyz (Repertory Philippines); Bat Boy (BlueRepertory).

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (FEMALE): The year’s best musical featured the year’s best performance: Cris Villonco gleamed in her turn as the delicate but ferocious warrior-princess Zafira. Other notables: Joanna Ampil (West Side Story, Stages); May Bayot (Skin-Deep, PETA); Naomi Emmerson (Piaf: Love Conquers All, MusicArtes), Laura Cabochan (Bat Boy); Nica Reynoso (Summer of ’42, BlueRepertory).

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (MALE): This is a category in which I can’t point to any one performer who stood out from the rest, so here are those I found remarkable: Red Concepcion (Altar Boyz); Onyl Torres (Isang Panaginip na Fili, Dulaang UP); Robert Seña (Skin-Deep); Jett Pangan (EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson, Tanghalang Pilipino); Marvin Ong (Bat Boy).

OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (FEMALE): Only one person appears in this category, but it was for a fabulous performance. Rowena Vilar stole West Side Story from her fellows, making her Anita the character we cared about most. She was the show’s foremost triple-threat: singer, dancer, actor. Here’s hoping the Australia-based Pinay keeps coming back.

OUTSTANDING FEATURED PERFORMANCE IN A MUSICAL (MALE): It was a nonsinging role, but Ricky Ibe’s smoldering Boulasem in Orosman at Zafira was exactly the seriously nasty villain the story needed. Other notables: Roeder Camañag (Ibong Adarna, Gantimpala Theater Foundation); Jake Macapagal (West Side Story); Bodjie Pascua (The Magic Flute, Philippine Opera Company); Reb Atadero (Summer of ’42).

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION FOR CHILDREN: PETA’s Batang Rizal spoke to both children and grownups and kept both marvelously entertained. Other notables: Ibong Adarna (dir. Roobak Valle); Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang (PETA; adapted by Christine Bellen, dir. Phil Noble).

OTHER ACHIEVEMENTS IN STAGE DIRECTION: Two full-blown opera productions came onstage last year, both directed by Floy Quintos. For the CCP and UST Conservatory of Music, Quintos tarted up Strauss’s Die Fledermaus deliciously. The opera goes by in a bubbly and naughty blur, and you leave the theater giddy. For the Philippine Opera Company, he moved Puccini’s La Boheme to contemporary Manila and gave the love story set among struggling artists a new poignance.

ACHIEVEMENTS IN TRANSLATION AND ADAPTATION: For Orosman at Zafira, Anril Tiatco turned the sprawling text of Balagtas into the base for a compellingly modern music drama. The bewildering nonsense of Ionesco’s “Bald Soprano” became, in the hands of Ricardo Abad and Baby Jay Crisostomo (Tanghalang Ateneo), a heady brew of hilarious, euphonious blather that mocked Pinoy middle-class pretensions. Jerry Respeto brought Alberto Florentino’s now-quaint English adaptation of Nick Joaquin’s "May Day Eve" (Tanghalang Ateneo) into a familiar Filipino without losing any of its stateliness. Rogelio Sicat and Luna Sicat-Cleto’s Filipino translation of Shakespeare’s Othello (Tanghalang Ateneo) made the Bard’s poetry contemporary and accessible without sacrificing its poetry and power.

A final curtain call: this is the first and last of my yearend theater roundups. I began the year wondering if watching plays and writing about them was something I could pursue along with my full-time academic and erratic creative-writing careers. One year later, I realize that I can’t pursue this without institutional support, something I am finding difficult to obtain. So my short, happy life as a wannabe theater critic ends here.

My thanks goes to the many companies that graciously allowed me to watch their shows. And thanks, too, to the multitude who toiled in front of the lights or in the shadows to affirm the importance of “giving to airy nothing a local habitation and a name.” The year is over, and so are the shows. The rest is gratitude.

* * * * *

As for 2009: Dulaang UP’s Atang, easily one of the best productions of 2008, returns to the stage for a brief return engagement from January 28 to February 1 at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, Palma Hall, UP–Diliman, Quezon City. A story based on the life of sarswela star and singer Atang dela Rama, the play features Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino, Frances Makil-Ignacio, Ayen Munji-Laurel, and Kalila Aguilos. Call 0917–6206224, 0922–8206224, 981–8500 local 2449, 926–1349, or email luzsdeluna2003@yahoo.com.

Repertory Philippines kicks off its 2009 season with a Nick Joaquin classic, A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino. Set in prewar Manila, it tells of two spinster sisters who stay on in their ancestral home with their frail artist father, despite pressure from relatives to abandon the old house. Portrait is directed by Jose Mari Avellana, the son of Daisy Avellana, who starred in the first staging of the play in 1955. The cast includes a bevy of stage luminaries such as Irma Adlawan, Ana Abad Santos, Liesl Batucan, Jay Glorioso, Dido de la Paz, Baby Barredo, and Chinggoy Alonso. The play runs until February 8 at Onstage Greenbelt One Theater, Makati City. Call 887–0710 or 891–9999 (Ticketworld).

The Philippine Education Theater Association, or PETA, stages Tony Perez’s Saan Ba Tayo Ihahatid ng Disyembre? Directed by Nonon Padilla, the play centers on a simple love story complicated by betrayal, anger, and jealousy. The run begins February 6 and ends March 15 at the PETA Theater Center, Quezon City. Call 410–0821 or 0917–8154567, or email petampro@yahoo.com.

Tanghalang Pilipino begins the year by restaging Mga Gerilya sa Powell Street, the story of Filipino war veterans hoping for a better life in San Francisco. Adapted by Rody Vera from the novel by Benjamin Pimentel, the play is directed by Chris Millado and runs from January 23 to February 1 at the CCP Tanghalang Huseng Batute. Then comes the return of the popular musical ZsaZsa Zaturnnah. The hit show runs from February 6 to March 8 at the CCP Little Theater. Call Lorelei or Paolo at 832–1125 local 1620 or 1621, 832–3661, or 0928–5518645.

And now for something completely different 10

See cellist Wells Cunningham play the Handel-Halvorsen Passacaglia for cello and violin with violinist Wells Cunningham. The video is titled, appropriately, "The Impossible Duet." (The violin guy plays his instrument kinda funny, don't you think?)



I wonder if these two blokes are related to guitarist Wells Cunningham, here playing Van Halen's "Spanish Fly" on acoustic guitar. He's pretty good, too.

‘Lysistrata’ lives

According to a BBC news report that came out on the eve of the new year, women in Naples threatened to withhold sex from their partners if they refused to forgo setting off illegal fireworks:

Naples sex strike over fireworks

December 31, 2008

New Year's Eve could prove to be something of a damp squib for some men in the Italian city of Naples.

Hundreds of Neapolitan women have pledged to go without sex unless their men promise to refrain from setting off dangerous illegal fireworks. . . .

The women say it is the only way to persuade their partners that they are serious about their concerns.

"Setting off illegal fireworks isn't celebrating, it's dangerous," Carolina Staiano, a founder of the campaign, told La Stampa newspaper.

She told women that if their man did not understand the dangers they should "take action and make him sleep on the sofa".

''If a sex strike is what it takes in order to get the attention of our men, husbands, partners and sons, then we're ready for it," Mrs Staiano, 44, told Italy's Ansa news agency. . . .

But the campaign, which started as a small-scale pledge in her home town of Lettere, about 40km (25 miles) from Naples, now has hundreds of supporters and has generated massive media interest. . . .

The move was inspired by the ancient Greek play Lysistrata, in which the women of Athens refuse to have sex unless their men folk forge a truce with their rivals from Sparta.

Doctor and local councillor Vincenzo Sorrentino, who has long campaigned against the illegal fireworks, said a sex ban was "an issue that men are particularly sensitive to''.

''The idea of no sex is not exactly popular and polls among local men have suggested they plan to make much greater efforts this year to prevent illegal fireworks being let off," he said. . . .

Now what would it take to get us Pinoys to give up this dangerous habit? I'm old enough to remember when fireworks were prohibited, but that didn't stop anybody then. What might actually work now?