My Antigone experience
MANILA, Philippines - I’ve always maintained that sports is a microcosm of human life, a safe environment where you can experience reality buffered from inevitable heartbreak. There is another similar laboratory of human experience: the theater.
I had done quite a lot of plays before becoming a full-time sports journalist and broadcaster, first learning the craft under the immortal Onofre Pagsanghan in Dulaang Sibol, then sharpening my talents under Dr. Ricky Abad in Tanghalang Ateneo, followed by a brief turn with the legendary Rolando Tinio in Teatro Pilipino. There were other plays in between, including Oedipus Rex for UP. The last play I appeared in was Fr. James Reuter’s The Strong Are Lonely 22 years ago, when I played the Jesuit patron St. Ignatius, whose leg was ripped open by a cannonball on the battlefield. It was so long ago, my eldest son Vincent, who is now graduating from college at the Ateneo, had a small role as — what else? — an infant. It was post-Edsa: anything was possible.
Since then the world dialed up to fast forward and never looked back. The Internet grew into a pervasive phenomenon, social networking has become everyone’s distraction of choice, and we were all gradually swallowed up by career and family. At times, we don’t realize that we’ve unwittingly given up a part of our soul to convince ourselves we’ve become more responsible.
Unwittingly. There’s that word again. It is part of Sophocles’ classic Greek trilogy, it is the root of all the convoluted complexities of the lives of Oedipus and his daughter Antigone, now retold as a riveting musical from the fertile mind of playwright Floy Quintos as part of Tanghalang Ateneo’s 35th season offerings.
Yes, I am in a musical. It took a while to sink in for me, too. And it has been an uplifting, soul-searching and inspiring experience. At times, I have found myself just open-mouthed at the brilliance of my cast-mates, the chorus and the production staff, a brilliance undimmed by the stresses and complication of life we impose on ourselves when we leave school. Being around people half your age brings tears to your eyes, both at how old you feel and how amazing they are, or will be very soon. There are very few potent, immersive communal experiences left. Thank God for theater.
I really want to stress how incredibly gifted these young people are. In the last three months alone, I have stopped and tilted my head up just to catch more of the soul-stirring singing and heart-thumping choreography of Phil Pamintuan many times. What I find most refreshing is that these youngsters have absolutely no idea how amazing they are. And the actors are so diversely talented; each performance is striking in a different manner.
Depicting Antigone are the breathtakingly skilled Laura Cabochan and the powerfully emotional Opaline Santos. Both conflict intensely with the strong sincerity of Brian Sy and raw intensity of Tarek El Tayech as Creon. Tying everything together is the riveting storytelling of the blind seer Tiresias, essayed indelibly in three distinct ways by Gel Basa, Amihan Ruiz and Raf Bravo. Listening to each one of them sing is electric. The hapless Ismene is portrayed spot-on by Kat Buted and Natasha Tañada. And when they finally speak up through song, it is showstopping. Chuckie Juan and Gry Gimena alternate as Haemon, torn between love and obedience, but too weak to take a stand. Each one of these singers could carry a musical solo, complemented with the superb dancing of Tony Falcon as the irresistible Polynikes and a powerhouse chorus. Together, they are power itself.
Being thrown into such a mix of young but experienced thespians can be intimidating, and it is a great challenge. Luckily, for much of the play I get to sit back in silent admiration, more so when my fellow Oedipus, Earle Figuracion, is onstage, showing me how it’s done in the beautiful tenor voice I never had. I am grateful Ricky Abad brought me back after all these years, more so that his direction has been the constant standard of excellence for T.A.
The only unanswered question I have left is why I deprived myself of this thrill for so long, now that I remember why I loved it so much in the first place. Perhaps, like Oedipus, in leaving, I was guided back to where I started.
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Break Away Antigone has performances at the Rizal Mini Theatre in the Ateneo de Manila campus on Feb. 11 to 15 and 18 to 22 at 7 p.m., with 2 p.m. matinees on Saturdays. For ticket inquiries, call Gel Basa at 0917-6309097.
