People will never see one thing exactly the same way. I believe it's because identities,personal history and taste level and social class affect what a person chooses to see. That's the beauty of art, there's an element of uncertainty whether what was created was a masterpiece or not. The artist waits with bated breath for either the applause or the indifferent silence after a product is presented for scrutiny. That being said, I think it is important to voice out the reactions of the audience to give constructive encouragement. Sometimes an opinion of one pushes the artist to make an unpolished rock a sparkling diamond.
That being said, here is what I thought about Manhid the Musical.
Being the brainchild of radical artists of the 90s, there was a risk that the story would not translate well on stage. The history of its staging being raw and real type of theatre made it a challenge as well as they bring the story to a larger audience in the Main Theatre of the CCP. There was also the issue of the music capturing a new crowd of listeners.Will a complex story with commercial appeal be appreciated by the high nosed people of CCP ? Staging this production was a big risk. While it's last staging was a hit, with new collaborators at work the question marks will float in the air.
Superheroes, rock music, ballet and bands sounded iffy to me. I hoped for the best but I was worried that it would stray and be a caricature of baduy. Thankfully, it was not. While the story was that of pinoy avengers, heroes, ex men journeys and kalikasan personified, the talent was about refined artistry. The amount of talent on stage was astounding. The music was played and sung with soul. The dancing was performed with passion. Paul Morales casted the perfect people for the role. The heroines were mostly played by the actors and the villains were interpreted by the modern ballet dancers.
Dilim was played by the striking singer Jean Judith Javier. Definitely she was my favorite singer in the group. Not only did she have the gift of stage presence, her silvery voice filled the air with mystery. After two songs, I decided she was google worthy. Each of her appearances made me want to get to know her better. Her acting was refreshing as she did not go overboard portraying a character attached to multiple stereotypes. She did everything
Worthy of mention was Gold Villar who entertained everyone with her impeccable comedic timing. Her performance was fresh. I could be wrong but I sense that adlib and random improvisations are her magic. Hearing her speaking voice, i was surprised that she was pitch perfect with every song she performed. She captured the hearts of many with her belting voice and her crisp cussing.
Sandino Martin took the lead as Bantugan, the leader of the good guys. Stop,look and listen is probably the best way the describe the experience. One must stop because almost all the scenes has him in it. Then you will probably take a second look because he is eye-candy. Lastly you will listen and swoon as he sings as if he were straight out of an acoustic concert. True, he could have made a few of his many scenes more memorable but as the main symbol of goodness in the land filled with manhid people, I grew a liking to him.
Richardson Yadao was born to play Apolaki. The conyo slang, the swagger and even the comedy he brought to the table was worthy of utmost praise. He leaps with power in his legs and confidence in his eyes. He raised the bar for the other dancers as he not only stood out for his dancing, he gloriously conquered acting too.
Denise Parungao was picture perfect as Gonongleda easily doing double ala seconde turns and pose' attitudes with silky balances. She did not disappoint the audience consistently showing her cirque de soleil flexibility .
With such a big cast of characters. Not all shone but no one underplayed their individual roles. The day I watched not all were pitch perfect but i easily forgave them because emotion was present. I say the cast did their best with what was given.
Needless to say. I enjoyed the production as a musical. As a collaboration however there were a few points that could have been improved. The ensemble choreography was very strong and appropriate. However, when it came to the big numbers where the singers and dancers had to dance and perform together as heroes and villains, it was quite messy. Skillwise and choreography wise, it was as if there was a demarcation line between the two sets of artists. Perhaps a more unified set of choreography would not have highlighted the singers' inferior (compared to.the classically trained ballet dancers) skills. As expected in any collaboration between song and dance, there were a handful of scenes where I was conflicted having to choose what part of the show to watch. I would have preferred a subtle blend of arts.
The story ends with an open ending. It was a message of hope for the future generation. However the message sent was like a whisper in the wind drowned by many voices. It was not quite as dramatic not emphatic as it could have been. The whole show peaked with so much vibrance only to end a bit dimly for my taste.
Truth be told, I am not a fan of the story but I still salute to this valiant effort. Though I've thrown a few criticisms here and there, I went home proud of the people behind the show. It was after all very entertaining, rich with talent and to a a certain extent patriotic and nationalistic. At the end of the show I screamed "Bravo" to express my appreciation. Now I end the experience by typing the words "Bravo" to Ballet Philippines for taking a risk for art's sake. Bravo for allowing audiences to witness a collaboration of Filipino talent. All original Filipino musicals deserve to be on the spotlight.
Ballet Philippines' Manhid Promotional Materials
Photography: Jojo Mamangun
Creative Director: Paul Alexander Morales
Styling: Gelo Arucan
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