This is not a critique (of King and I and Boeing Boeing)

It’s better that I start off with a disclaimer. Let it be clear that I am not attempting to be expert in theater, especially since my only first-hand experience of acting was in our Dramatics Club in Grade Six, where I played a duke.

I’ve always been curious about plays, but I like musicals, like Annie, even if I only got to watch it on television when I was a kid. I know the songs of Miss Saigon, but didn’t see it when it ran at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. I love Rent.

Last year, my husband Orange and I watched Cats and Mamma Mia, but I fell asleep at certain parts. (I have a good excuse. I didn’t get enough sleep the night before.)

So do I or don’t I like plays? 
“It’s a matter of watching the right ones,” I was told by veteran stage actress and director Joy Virata when I had breakfast with her and our ninong, former Prime Minister Cesar Virata. 
In a span a two weeks, I watched two performances: Oscar Hammerstein II’s The King and I at the Resorts World and Boeing Boeing at On Stage.

For families, I would recommend that you bring your children to watch The King and I. It’s a two-hour long show but even our pamangkins didn’t seem to mind. Brianna, our four-year-old niece, was glued to the stage. The costumes and the set were very colorful, and the songs were something that the children could easily sing along with. 
It was not only entertaining but educational as well.

If The King and I is general patronage, Boeing Boeing is a comedy for adults. Its plot is something that most of us can relate to. It’s a story of an architect playboy, Bernard, and his three girlfriends who are all air hostesses a.k.a flight attendants (FAs) from different airlines. Bernard skillfully keeps track of all his girlfriends’ timetables. Everything seems to be going smoothly until a storm gets all three FAs stranded in Paris. This is where the riot begins. 
Two hours went by so quickly that I didn’t mind if I saw the play all by myself. I was laughing at my seat until the end. 

But more than the story, I was keen in observing the actors, especially after my conversation with Joy.

She explained how much discipline is required in theater. According to the stage guru, â€œYou also have to be intelligent” to portray roles, and be knowledgeable not only of the accent, mannerisms, history and even culture. Joy transformed into the stressed-out maid of Bernard, Bertha on stage. I hardly recognized the woman I had breakfast with. Amazing.

The air hostesses — a German, an Italian and an American — were all hilarious, but I specifically enjoyed the portrayal of Carla Dunareanu, (the girlfriend of Christian Bautista).

Boeing Boeing is a delight, especially since the actors blended well on stage. “A good actor is a good listener,” Joy explained to me. It was not only about throwing punchlines, but reacting to how fellow actors deliver their lines.

I would know nothing about acting technique, but whatever it was they did, worked for me. I am a newbie when it comes to theater appreciation, but clearly, I can get used to this. 
Boeing Boeing will run until today, Feb. 17. Catch the last flight.

(For your comments, e-mail me at [email protected].)