Text by Aga Posadas,
Photos by Evo Joel Contrivida
Original Article can be found HERE
I always wondered why
there are some people who admire villains. They would say they can relate to
these scoundrels. Relate to their evil aspirations? Are people naturally evil?
They would even say, "Ang guwapo guwapo ni Loki!". Really? That
dreadful face that does nothing but harm?
Maybe "Kung
Paano Ako Naging Leading Lady The Musical" can explain. Created from Carlo
Vergara's one-act play, with music and lyrics by Vince de Jesus, Leading Lady
the Musical is the first release by Dalanghita Productions. This could be the
next big thing in theatre as the skill was evident by the direction of Chris
Martinez.
We follow the story
of two sisters, Mely and Viva. Mely, ordinary yet diligent, (Bituin Escalante
and Frenchie Dy, alternating) is hired as a maid by a group of English-speaking
Pinoy superheroes called Fuerza Filipinas. One of her bosses, the telepathic
Leading Man (Markky Stroem and Hans Escktein, alternating) falls for her. And
yes, they fall in love with each other. In the midst of their love story, the
younger Viva (Kim Molina), always jealous of her sister, is hired by a group of
villains called Kayumanggilas to infiltrate the house of Fuerza Filipinas. So
good versus evil. The attractive and famous Fuerza Filipinas versus the plain
and vindictive Kayumanggilas. Mely versus Viva. Mely and Leading Man versus the
world. These conflicts make up entertaining intertwined story.
Leading Lady the
Musical excels in almost every aspect of stage productions. The plot could be
too simple but twists and humor can make your day or days. Special mention to
the leader of Kayumanggilas, Senyor Blanco (Nar Cabico), who made the audience
literally LOL with his grammar gaffes. Even the Fuerza's robot created some
laughs.
At first, I thought,
why do the Fuerza Filipinas heroes speak English and sound so rich? While the
Kayumanggilas are the "common" Pinoys? Then I realized, this is the
current state of Philippine society. The elites are good-looking and are deemed
heroes, while the ordinary Pinoys are...ordinary and always try too hard to be
elites. We relate to villains because we always want to be better. We always
want to be those people on top. (Fine, I realized that after a Q&A between
the audience and the production after the show.)
Anybody can be a
hero. Even Mely and Viva can be heroes. Anybody can be a hero even without
superpowers. Even superheroes fail. And die.
Four words.
Towel-clad Markki Stroem. Or was that three words? Markki Stroem is just one
word, right? Alright, he sings and acts really well. Seriously, he defines the
character Leading Man. Bituin Escalante and Kim Molina delivered outstanding
performances as expected. And of course, Menchu Lauchenco-Yulo, who played
Madre de Dios, the leader of Fuerzas, was divine, especially her abs. The
collaboration between the actors from English and Filipino productions is
genius. This is one of the best cast ever on stage.
Oh such great music.
Every music number can make you smile and/or laugh. You wouldn't care that much
about the technicals, as you would enjoy the entire show. Maybe I did notice
that part, Viva's transition into a super villain. She just walked off stage leaving
her doppelgangers, and she came back with a different costume after a minute.
There could have been a better way of doing that.
I can't help but
compare this production to the recent musical by the Ballet Philippines which
was also about superheroes. Mandhid's story has more depth. But Leading Lady
has more entertainment value, better humor and even better choreography.
Verdict: A.
Towel-clad Markki Stroem! Was that too loud? I'm kidding. Watch it because you
are a cultured Pinoy.
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