In these days of short attention spans and unpredictable patronage, when some producers insist on staging classics in their entirety and then wonder why a number of seats are suddenly empty after the intermission, it takes a brave soul to go out and mount experimental theater in venues outside the Cultural Center of the Philippines or the University of the Philippines.
The CCP has institutionalized its Virgin Labfest and has its captive audience, while UP can still count on its bright-eyed, enthusiastic student populace. For most commercial theater companies catering to a, at times, jaded audience, the formula and refuge for success has been mounting musical after musical, or seeking smaller venues and limited runs for dramas. So while there may be some trepidation, I have to give high marks to the Short + Sweet for making the grand move to the Samsung Hall of SM Aura in Bonifacio Global City for its second Philippine edition.
Short + Sweet Manila 2015 will be running all the weekends of September. An Australian theatrical initiative, Short + Sweet is the biggest short play festival in the world, with editions mounted in Mumbai, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Newcastle (to name a few) and, of course, Manila. Presenting original works in theater, dance and music — the only over-riding qualification is that the work should run for no more than 10 minutes. That, at the very least, should alleviate the problem of those with short attention spans, as up to 11 ten-minute plays are presented on a single day. Last year’s Short + Sweet Manila saw 26 short plays being presented, with nearly a hundred actors participating while this year’s edition has 33 top plays and 18 wild cards.
Held last year at the UP’s Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, the home of Dulaang UP, this year sees a shift to a more accessible and commercial venue, and marks still another step in SM’s initiatives to bring cultural presentations to its malls, while promoting the Philippine theater scene.
I have always been a sucker for the whimsical and/or satirical, so you entitle your play Beatrix Potter Must Die!, Cate Blanchett Wants to Be My Friend on Facebook, or The Devil Has My Cock, and you’ve piqued my curiosity. In Tagalog, I Spied Si Nelson, Ang Nanay, Ang Pancit Canton and Kwentong Beer House. Of course, what these plays will actually be about, how they are executed, remain to be seen.
What is evident is that Short + Sweet is establishing itself as a showcase for established, emerging and aspiring thespians, writers, directors, singers, composers, choreographers and musicians — with a format that basically compels each participant to grab the audience’s attention right away as there really is no room for a “slow burn” type of development.
Strange land
One of the unique elements of these three novels is how the authors conjure up worlds that are strangely familiar, yet aren’t quite what we could consider familiar or normal.
The Weirdness by Jeremy Bushnell (available on Amazon.com) Billy Ridgeway is an aspiring novelist, who, while biding time for the world to discover what a talent he is, works at a sandwich shop. Think of a Kevin Smith film to visualize the kind of protagonist Billy is. He wakes up one day in his shared apartment to the aroma of really great coffee and discovers an individual who introduces himself as Lucifer Morningstar. So what do you do when Satan comes to you with an inviting proposition, that also involves saving NYC? There are warlocks and witches, a missing Neko cat doll, and werewolves thrown in for good measure. Ultimately about friendship, destiny and making choices, the novel is an entertaining romp through a hipster-ed Manhattan we know, but given a new supernatural dimension.
The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi (available at National Book Store) Cli-fi (climate fiction) coming from a Taiwanese author, this novel surprises by skillfully blending the climate change and environmental message with engrossing narratives and characters who stand on their own. It starts with a double-helix narrative — one involves Alice and her missing husband and son who live in a Taiwan coastal home, while the other has Atile’i of the Wayowayo island tribe. Atile’i sets off on a solo sea journey because as second son he has no real standing in Wayo society. He ends up on a moving vortex of trash that due to typhoons and weather conditions is about to crash onto the Taiwanese coast — precisely where Alice resides. Mixing folklore with science and technology, this novel astounds while serving as a cautionary tale.
Strange Bodies by Marcel Theroux (available on Amazon.com) The premise of this novel finds its roots in the Frankenstein tale. Nick Slopen, a Samuel Johnson expert and academic, died in 2009 in a road accident. So, who is this man claiming to be Slopen? Bearing no clear physical resemblance to the Slopen everyone, including his wife and two children, knew, this new Slopen is in possession of memories and thoughts that would suggest there is more to his claim than meets the eye. Notions of mortality, identity and what constitutes a personality, swirl throughout this original take on “creation.” And going for this novel is the impeccable writing of Theroux who carefully maps out the needed suspension of disbelief we need to take his tale seriously. Yes, it is a “what if,” but we subscribe to the “how” of his brilliant presentation.