One of the privileges I am thankful for during this quarantine period is that I get to watch theatrical musicals that won’t ever have been aired if not for these unusual circumstances.
I have watched several weeks ago a full run of the 25th Anniversary show of The Phantom of the Opera and today I watched the full run of the 115th show of Ang Huling El Bimbo: The Musical. It’s a theatrical production featuring the music of the popular Pinoy OPM band – Eraserheads.
You can buy the Eraserheads Music Anthology at Amazon.
If I haven’t told you yet, I am an avid music fan. I don’t get to watch theatricals because I am not that privileged to afford them but whenever I have the chance to watch a musical production – be it on the big screen or now on YouTube – I grab the chance.
And today was that day. The musical airs only for 2 days and it’s a fund drive for ABS’s Pantawid Pamilya Program. I am so glad I caught it.
The production was a success because it was a testament to the ability of Original Pinoy Music to be converted and used for a theatrical production rivaling Western Shows such as in Broadway and West End. Most of the time, Philippine theaters would showcase West End or Broadway shows, and rarely do we see any original productions featuring OPMs. But And Huling El Bimbo was the first and being successful, paved the way for others.
I loved how I could relate to the songs as I am an Eraserheads fan. Their music was popular when I was growing up and the very first CD that I actually bought and own was their Anthology of Best Hits.
Further, I related to the setting which is my Alma Matter – UPD – or maybe I just assumed it was because the band was from there.
But beyond the setting and the music to which I could relate, I was struck hard by the storyline and how, far from the Western musicals, is how true and realistic the musical is to the Philippine setting.
I am touched by the struggles of the main character – Joy – and how she met a sad fate in the end. We may want a happy ending but sadly, for many like Joy, life is just that – cruel. I am angered by the people who have the gall to deceive others pretending they are protectors when in reality they are predators. And how sadly, in the musical, this kind of people are not brought to justice – another allusion to the reality of justice in this country.
I am saddened by the reactions of Joy’s so-called friends – how they evaded her for years when all she wanted was to bond with them and tell them they can let go of their guilty consciences. This shows to me that in friendship, no matter how deep the friendship may go, when guilty consciences thrive – not only does the friendship die but the lives of those involved decay slowly from the inside out. This goes to show how, if we truly value our friendships and we value our relationships with those around us, we must never let guilt fester. Honesty, no matter how brutal and hard it can be, is always – ALWAYS – preferred over hiding under a comfortable lie.
In friendship, no matter how deep the friendship may go, when guilty consciences thrive – not only does the friendship die but the lives of those involved decay slowly from the inside out.
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I hope they will stage another run. I know it is hard for the theater to keep staging musicals and even non-musical plays. Ang Huling El Bimbo was in production for 2 years but was conceptualized as early as 5 years ahead of the very first show. Which goes to show how much work goes into creating a musical production.
But I applaud the people behind it for their creativity and dedication to the show. I applaud after watching the YouTube premier even when I know they can’t hear me. I would have clapped loudly and hooted along with the live crowd if I can. It was indeed a great production.
I wish I could let you, reader, watch it. Sadly, they end the broadcast once the time is up and I don’t think they will indefinitely keep it up. I hope they could but that makes it prone to piracy and that is something we never want to happen to them. For all the hard work that goes into production – from the actors who have to sing, dance and act live to the band who have to play musical scores for hours on end and to the backstage production staff who have to do the same things again and again for nights – we owe it to them not to pirate their hard work and let them earn a decent wage.
But I wish theater could be more accessible. After all, it is a wonderful form of entertainment – both entertaining and enlightening at the same time.
And if given the chance, I would really, really, really want to watch more of it – live.
I wish theater could be more accessible. After all, it is a wonderful form of entertainment – both entertaining and enlightening at the same time.
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