tick, tick... Boom!: Actions speak louder than words

No day but today. That was Jonathan Larson’s message when he wrote the musical Rent. And many people all over the world have taken that message to heart. Rent continues to run on Broadway (now going on its seventh year), it has performed worldwide to critical and commercial success (including in Manila and Singapore and with a Manila Concert Production scheduled later this year) and it is now being made into a motion picture directed by Spike Lee.

What many people might not know is that before Rent, Jonathan Larson wrote another musical, one that is more intimate but just as moving with a message all of its own. The musical is called tick, tick...BOOM! and its message is Actions Speak Louder Than Words.

I was approached by Victoria Leacock, one of Jonathan Larson’s closest friends, to become an investor in tick, tick...BOOM! when it was in pre-production to open off-Broadway at the Jane Street Theater in New York. Without hesitation, I agreed. It was a show I truly believed in, written by a man I consider one of my heroes – even if he is no longer with us in the flesh.

And now, almost exactly a year to the date tick, tick... BOOM! opened in New York, it is opening in Manila. At the opening night party of the show in New York, Allan Larson (Jonathan’s wonderfully loving father) pulled me aside and suggested I do the show in Manila. He has always had a special connection with the Philippines, having served here during World War II. Soon after, I found myself with the rights to stage the show here.

Because Jonathan passed away six years ago, Victoria decided to ask Pulitzer Prize winning playwright David Auburn (who wrote Proof – one of the best American dramas in recent times) to strengthen the material and rework some scenes. The collaboration of David Auburn and Jonathan Larson is seamless. You can’t tell where one work ends and the other begins.

We began rehearsals for the Manila production last July 1. The first day of rehearsals was exciting and exhilarating. In Jett Pangan, Bituin Escalante and Michael de Mesa, I had a dream cast. Not only did their voices harmonize beautifully, they also sang with an incredible amount of heart. Michael’s touching rendition of Real Life had us all paying close attention. Bituin Escalante’s Come To Your Senses had us all on the edge of our seats and Jett Pangan’s soul-searching Why had us on the verge of tears.

The three have effortlessly connected with Jonathan Larson’s words and music. Perhaps it is a testament to how brilliant a composer he was.

As a director, there is nothing more thrilling than working with a cast who comes to rehearsals everyday so excited about the discoveries they will make and so proud of the material they are performing. And that we all are. Even the crew, led by Stage Manager and Production Manager Bernice Aspillaga is thrilled to be working on such a powerful piece of theater. We are extremely proud to have the opportunity to perform tick, tick...BOOM! for a Filipino audience, despite it being an unfamiliar musical to most people here.

But we are relying on the audience now more than ever. Gone are the days when theater companies could subsidize some of their production expenses through sponsorships and monetary grants.

Now, understandably because of the economy, everyone is holding on tighter to their money. Luckily, we continue to have companies who believe in us and help us out the best way they can. The Philippine STAR has been our partner in promoting our shows since 2000. Two years down the road, the partnership is stronger than ever and means more to me now. Other companies such as Weave Creatives, Soundcrew, Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, Bravo, MBC Yes FM 101.1, NBC Joey 92.3 FM, Citilite 88.3 FM, Citrio, Raymund Isaac, Emphasis Salon, Goldilocks, Nativa Green Tea, Apple Center by Powermac, Aquasure, VS Sarabia Optical/Mossimo, and Sennheiser continue to support our productions and to them I will always be grateful.

tick, tick....BOOM! is a magical musical about the choices we make in or lives that eventually lead us to become who we are. We’ve all been there. We’ve all made these choices (sometimes painful and difficult). And we’ve all become the people we are today because of those decisions. The important thing is not to regret the choices we have made and to always, always remember that Action Speaks Louder Than Words.

tick, tick... BOOM! runs at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza from July 28 to August 11. It stars Jett Pangan of the Dawn, Bituin Escalante and Michael de Mesa. It is directed by Bobby Garcia with musical direction by ManMan Angsico and Lighting Design by Gerry Fernandez. For tickets, contact Atlantis Productions at tel. no. 892-7078 or Ticket World at 891-5610.