Repertory Philippines' Leading Ladies led by MEN!

Mixed reviews on Leading Ladies reminds me of reviews of Adam Sandler’s Jack and Jill . That plus  the cross dressing puts the two forever meshed in my head. I’m not saying the two are artistically on equal ground . I do think however that  those who did not appreciate both performances completely missed the point.

The idea of Adam Sandler cross dressing to play  a girl role  was not meant to be REALISTIC. This is not a Mrs Doubtfire or Roderick Paulate  transformation. It was making fun of Adam Sandler, putting him in a dress and making him perform with flair and gusto. The idea was never to forget it was Adam Sandler. I feel that that was the real punchline. Yes, he was awkward. Yes he was hard to look at. Was he funny? Indeed. The audience was roaring in laughter.

Same goes for the lanky men in Leading Ladies.  James Stacey  and Topper Fabregas as the scheming  actors in drag were hilarious. They were real men  acting to be  contemporary ladies. They too were hard to look at. But that was again the whole point of it all. And overall, they sold the plot well.

I have watched Topper Fabregas in only two shows, Shakespeare in Hollywood and Leading Ladies. But already I am a big fan. His comedic timing is impeccable. In this play he would be the most consistent in performance.  James Stacey chose to  do a more straightforward  queenly performance.  He commanded the stage and demanded all eyes on him. Hard to forget a gigantic funny guy dressed in Cleopatra garb.  The good thing about this show was that every single one of the cast members were funny. Cris Villlonco as Meg , Gianina Ocampo as Audrey, Oliver Usison as Doc delivered distinct performances.

As always, there were areas that could have been  improved. Some members of the cast would be so into their performance  that accents would shift leaving one  wondering what side of the world you were in. The pace of the unravelling of events was also a bit dragging.  The ending also could have had more of a boom rather than a simple conclusion. As I said though in the beginning, what matters most is if the play was appreciated. It was, by me and the rest of the very small but very appreciative crowd who watched with me. Bravo Repertory Philippines