Anthony Rosaldo makes musical theater debut in Ang Huling El Bimbo

Anthony Rosaldo can count with his fingers the remaining number of days he can still rehearse for his role as the young Hector before Ang Huling El Bimbo The Musical’s opening night on April 21 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater of Newport World Resorts in Pasay City.

According to the Kapuso Pop Rocker, the cast has been doing rehearsals — five times a week, eight hours a day — for more than a month already.

As one of the new cast members of the upcoming 2023 run of the hit production featuring the music of Eraserheads, Anthony is determined to make his portrayal as convincing as can be, especially because Ang Huling El Bimbo is his first musical theater outing.

From the rehearsals alone, Anthony has realized that the challenge of doing theater is real.

“As a theater actor, you should be alert all the time, mabilis dapat ang pick-up at ‘yung mga kasabayan ko bihasa sila sa teatro and I don’t want to be left behind, so I keep up with their energy, their pace. Dito po sa theater, kailangan talagang disiplinado ka,” he said.

“Even if I get nervous every day, I still learn a lot of stuff about theater acting. There are terms also in theater that I am not familiar with. So it felt like attending a workshop every time I would have a one-on-one with our mentor, Miss Menchu Yulo, and Sir Dex (Dexter Santos, the director of the musical play),” he continued.

He further described his nervousness in doing theater as “more intense” than what he felt when he joined in The Clash. “I was only required to do one performance in The Clash every episode but here, I must memorize the scripts aside from the need to really internalize the character. There are so many aspects that you should focus on because aside from what I mentioned, the role also requires acting and dancing,” he laughed.

Good thing, the everyday rehearsals have allowed him to feel comfortable while singing, acting and dancing on stage as the young Hector. “Unlike in TV acting, where you can do retakes, here there’s no Take 2, everything must be perfect that’s why I would have panic attacks during the first few days of rehearsals. But I am now more comfortable with what I am doing on stage. Direk Dex would also tell us what to improve on and I’m happy na good notes na ‘yung nakukuha ko kay direk, better na ‘yung performance ko.”

His interest in joining musical theater began when Anthony got to watch the first run of Ang Huling El Bimbo on the digital streaming platform during the height of the pandemic in 2020.

He said it was the first musical play that deeply affected him. Anthony even found one particular role in the musical that suited his personality. That’s why, when the announcement for its rerun came last year, Anthony didn’t hesitate about submitting an audition piece.

“They were looking for a new cast, so I sent a video without expecting too much, although I must admit that I was really hoping (for a favorable result),” offered Anthony.

“Then only after a few days, they sent an e-mail telling me that I passed the audition and inviting me for a final call back. They also sent the script because they wanted me to read the lines of the young Hector, one of the lead roles. Grabe ‘yung kaba ko doon sa audition because I did a scene with theater actors like Gab Pangilinan,” he recalled.

Anthony revealed that rehearsals will continue until the day before the opening night.

Asked how he takes care of his voice, the GMA 7 talent said he is used to singing many songs as a lead vocalist during his music band days “because we usually had three sets per gig before and each set consists of eight to 10 songs kaya sanay ako sa ratratan. But I still make sure that I take care of my voice by getting eight hours of sleep, so I don’t go out and have drinks with my friends anymore (laughs). I also do some workouts, and of course, I do vocal warm-ups.”

He, too, stressed the importance of self-discipline because “the kind of discipline that theater taught me has become beneficial to me, in my everyday life. Now, I wake up early, I study my lines na parang feeling ko kahit anong gawin ko in the future, I’ll be more competent and focused on my work.”

Asked by The STAR if auditioning for more musical plays — local and international — is now part of his career goals, Anthony nodded in agreement and added, “I challenge myself every day and I always want to experience things that will help boost my career. After this (Ang Huling El Bimbo), my love for theater will definitely become deeper. So, that’s a possibility — that I will consider other roles and other theater plays in the future.”

(Ang Huling El Bimbo will have a regular schedule every Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and  matinee performances every Saturday and Sunday, 3 p.m. Tickets, now available at Newport World Resorts Box Office, TicketWorld and SM Tickets, are priced at P3,776, SVIP; P3,266, VIP; P2,696, Gold; P1,942, Silver; and P1,079, Bronze.)