A Postscript to Cebu Arts Council's Minî

In Cebu nowadays, legitimate live theater is hard to come by. More so, musical live theater. The monetary cost of production is prohibitive, and the vast efforts expended in preparations could go in vain at the last minute.

That’s why live theater intimidates me. Not watching a stage play, but doing one. When you’re the one putting up a show for others to watch, it can be scary.

So far, I’ve done only four theatrical productions: two plays, a full musical, and a revue. Too few, indeed, in a span of more than two decades. Although each one of those turned out very well – thank God! - I don’t excitedly look forward to doing another.

It terrifies me when I don’t have total control on a project I handle. And I think live theater is just not for people my kind. I want to have control – to the last, tiniest detail of the performance. I do have that, yes, but only during rehearsals.

During actual performances, the director has no control whatsoever. My people are out there on their own, from the performers to the backstage crew! All I can do is watch, with the rest of the audience.

When the curtain rises, I’d stop breathing, gritting my teeth and praying silently that nothing goes wrong. I’d hold my breath for minutes, breaking it only for a quick second or two, and then hold it again. It’s really such a torment; I could develop heart ailment doing it often.

Of course, I’d try so hard to perfect the show before opening night. I would run it over and over for endless days rehearsing, both in my mind and at actual practice. Costumes, makeup, sets, props, lighting, dialog, music, choreography, blocking, every single facial expression and body language of the performers, and all such other aspects would be checked, enhanced, re-checked and accordingly passed beforehand.

This was all clear to me when I agreed to do Minî for the Arts Council of Cebu, upon the invitation of my friend Marlinda Angbetic-Tan, chair of the Arts Council’s Theater committee. They wanted to stage a zarzuela for their 50th anniversary celebration. I knew I’d be wrecking my nerves again, but I said yes anyway.

I’m more comfortable doing film or pre-taped television. There, total control is possible. You can perfect a scene or a single shot of a scene. You can re-do a shot or scene as many times as you like, until you have the “take” that satisfies you. Then you lock it, and it’s not going to change in any way.

Things are different with live theater. You can spend hours working on a scene and just as soon as you think you have everything going right, when you run it again what you get is not the same. For one, actors make different slips every time.

True to my apprehension, it was an uphill climb from the very start in this Cebu Arts Council project. To begin with, there was no particular zarzuela material we could think of. When Minî finally came to mind, there was no script. The script was later obtained, but without its music component.

It’s good enough that Marlinda, as line producer, is a magician. (What else would you call someone who makes things appear out of nothing?) It took her some time, but she was able to produce the basic things we needed to start the production rolling.

Casting the play was really hard. It required actors who were singers as well. And just as soon as we had cast every role, we had to let go of the two actors whom we believed were most capable of carrying the play through. They had availability problems.

Time was running, and running out. At some point, we just stopped worrying about actors and got on with the rehearsals. With key roles yet unfilled!

Then we decided to reorganize the cast, to prioritize filling in the lead roles. Our basis for role assignments had now shifted from acting power to sheer intensity of interest. Crazy thing to do, but, yes, we did just that.

There were other very awkward decisions and choices we made. Rather embarrassing to mention. Honestly, we wouldn’t have made them if only we had other options.

But as the saying goes: “All’s well that ends well.” With a relentless producer running the project, our Minî eventually took form. And those crazy moves we took earlier soon proved to be right after all.

So I now take the courage to reveal some of those desperate measures we resorted to: We signed up pure greenhorns for the lead roles! And we didn’t actually audition people for the roles, because there were just too few prospects to choose from!

Yet our Jake Maningo and Yentl Beltran turned out to be brilliant new discoveries, as Eling and Mayang, respectively, in this Minî production. It is my great privilege to have witnessed their beautiful metamorphoses into the characters they portrayed in the play. At their present competence levels with their roles, I wouldn’t exchange them for any celebrity stage actors, unless perhaps Jonathan Price and Sarah Brightman would beg to do their parts in the succeeding performances.

Alden Reambonanza had ample acting experience, no doubt, but he probably had not been seen in a role like he did as Goryo. His portrayal was hilarious yet very credible. You wouldn’t think he’s acting at all.

We had some familiar names too – Philogene Florita, Lau Rogero, Jolen Lim, Nick Ampatin. These talents light up the local stage every now and then. Their participation in Minî really lent an essential grounding for the new actors, helping the neophytes to step up to performance level.

Marlinda Angbetic-Tan, in addition to her already heavy load looking over the entire production process, appeared in a cameo role, alongside Chiqui Cartagena-Lastierre. Gabriel Wong and Jegger Leones were the latest to join in, finally completing the cast just a few rehearsals more into the opening show! They performed, alternately, as the self-absorbed Quintin in the play.

The University of Southern Philippines Foundation Choir also performed. Ranz Medina, Jong David, Frank Lucas and Kimchell Villo, our stage management team, ran everything smoothly from backstage. James Derodo did the lighting.

Eli Manlangit was production designer and choreographer. Joel Oporto was the musical director. Prof. Obette del Rosario was mainly the force behind the seamless performance of the USPF choir, as the group’s trainer. Sal Malto created the period costumes of the actors, while Oscar Peralta did their matching hair and makeup.

After last night’s performance at SM City-Cebu Cinema 1, the zarzuela is now open for bookings in other places. It is certainly a good means for reawakening popular appreciation for our shared regional culture in the other cities and towns in the Visayas and Mindanao. Schools will also find it complementary with their teaching of local culture and social studies subjects.

And, of course, this Cebu Arts Council production of Minî is a timely chance for those who are now based abroad and returning home for next year’s Sinulog celebrations to book a special performance of the play. It is sure to rekindle their love and pride of their native cultural and artistic heritage.

My reluctance to do live theater has significantly softened with my involvement in Minî, from working with people whom I have seen to perfectly share my creative vision and dedication to the play – my cast and crew. I hope they had as much fun in it as I. And as much pride of the outcome. ?

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