Wowie and Dante share more than just the stage

The Bomb

When Wowie de Guzman appeared on stage for a PETA play one Thursday, it was a clear and balmy evening. The house was surprisingly full for an opening night.

As Wowie anxiously peeled off his beige drawstring pants at Fort Santiago’s Rajah Sulayman Theater, a decidedly arrested audience gasped after the act was finally completed, revealing a classic-cut white briefs.

The delicate act of Wowie, who essays the role of aspiring actor Jaime Eduque in the play The Bomb, symbolizes the sheer surrender of an unsullied Catholic teen-ager from a respectable middle-class family to the temptations of doing anything and everything to attain fame offered by stardom. "Kasalanan bang mag-ambisyon?" Wowie asks Dante Balboa and Jojit Lorenzo, who play the roles of stud Zoltan and seminarian Jomari, respectively. The two are Wowie’s friends in The Bomb, one of the three short plays currently mounted by PETA as a tribute to Rene Villanueva, a prolific writer for theater and of children‘s literature. Villanueva, who teaches at the University of the Philippines-Diliman, has written about 50 plays.

Equally shocking to the audience that night was the appearance on stage by a well-sculpted Dante skimpily clad in stunning red swimming trunks. Dante’s present physique improved tremendously compared to the time when the movie Kasiping was being filmed.

Wowie and Dante are the latest of the local movie and television industries’ talents who have successfully reinvented themselves by conquering legitimate stage. Included in this flock is Gina Alajar, a multi-awarded actress and director, who is appearing in the comedy play Mula sa Pusod... Pababa staged at the Music Museum.

Both Wowie and Dante appear on the PETA stage for the first time. However, the 27-year-old Wowie, a noted actor in television and in the movies, exudes more confidence in acting and delivering his kilometric lines in The Bomb. His commanding stage presence – while delivering his lines, silently crying, or simply staring into emptiness – suggests that his experience in the Gantimpala Theater Foundation’s production of Ibong Adarna, El Filibusterismo, Florante at Laura and Romeo and Juliet has been immensely fruitful. Among his films were Ipaglaban Mo 2, Sinakdal Ko Ang Aking Ina, Paano ang Puso Ko?, Luvtxt, Sana Naman and Dito sa Puso Ko.

As for Dante who calls himself an "educated hunk," his refreshing acting was a revelation. Notable acting for a movie actor who has only two stage plays, Mate: May Kaluluwa Ba Sa Likod ng Utak and 1898 where he played the role of Jose Rizal, to his credit. But, Dante should avoid being too self-conscious and he must project more confidence in delivering his lines and sharing a stage with his more experienced colleagues.

The Bomb is a play inspired by a scandal that was widely feasted on by the local media. It involved a teenager who boldly capitalized on his good physical attributes and "an important appendage" to seek favors from a local talent manager in a bid to fuel his rise to stardom. The Bomb, the only play in the trilogy where all the cast members had appeared in television or movie productions, is a biting commentary on the breakdown of societal values. Specifically, it is a sharp critique on the large population in the local entertainment industry of "talents" fashioned from enlargements, enhancements, and countless hours in the gym.

"Poverty is the root cause of almost all societal evils," says Wowie who now devotes 80 to 90 percent of his time to legitimate stage. In an interview, he cautions Filipinos not to aspire for "instant fame and fortune" that may bring them tragedy in the end.

Speaking from experience, Wowie’s trek to fame was long and accidental. He recalled his days as a member of the dance group Universal Motion in 1995. "Legitimate stage’s thick scripts and long lines had initially intimidated me. But after my first legitimate play, I started enjoying acting on plays. When I am not on stage, I look for that distinct fulfillment."

In a separate interview, Dante says, "Legitimate theater is an excellent training ground to further refine one’s acting abilities. It is a more difficult medium, but I do respect both legitimate theater and the film medium."

Dante, a UP-Diliman Mass Communication major, has three more semesters to go before completing his second undergraduate degree. His first undergraduate degree was in architecture from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines where he also earned master’s credits in landscape architecture.

"Going into legitimate theater, especially with a group as respected as PETA, is a challenge. A movie camera is a director’s microscope, while a stage is an actor’s arena where he uses his body movements to communicate with his audience," he says.

Both Wowie and Dante had to undergo the rigid screening demanded by PETA from its talents. Their audition consisted of script reading and character analysis.

Joining the two in the Soxie Topacio-directed play are Melvin Lee, Phil Noble, Karlo Enriquez, Jess Evardone, Wylie Cavero, Oman Ramos, Ruby Ruiz, Den Patricio, Ella Samonte, Roman Cruz, and Randy Padua.

It would be a great injustice not to mention the two other plays in the trilogy.

The first play, Watawat, was directed by Raffy Tejada and was written by Rene to mark the Philippine Centennial. This play deals with the agonies of a father and his son as they discuss whether it would be better to forget their bitter memories of the Philippines and migrate to the US. On the philosophical plane, the play analyzes life in the Philippines and the state’s expectations from its citizens to remain nationalistic despite their sufferings and oppression. It features Jack Yabut, Jojit Lorenzo, Karlo Enriquez, Bing Magtoto, Ruby Ruiz, Nicole Dominique Leonardo, Jayson Beltran, Onyc Tecson, Wylie Casero, Mae Paner, Ella Samonte, Oman Ramos, Roman Cruz, and Randy Padua.

On the surface, the second play Walang Iwanan is a psychological take on an illicit "May-December affair" between an older married woman and his young lover who was about to get hitched. The writer used the illicit affair as a vehicle to define the complex relations between the state and citizens. Directed by Melvin Lee, it stars Gigette Reyes and Nor Domingo.

For the entire trilogy, Shax Siasoco was the lighting designer, Vince de Jesus provided original music, and Boni Juan was the production designer.