#aheb

By Cassandra Isobelle [Sep 8, 2024]

Something to love about live theater is that the art cannot only be found on the stage but also with the audience—how the image of so many people gathered in one room to sit in unified appreciation of the show is an artwork in itself.

Annie (2016)

Sometime in September of 2016, I was gifted with the full dream experience of a theater kid with front row seats near the orchestra and a picture with the cast. And, if that wasn’t enough, little me also ran into Michael de Mesa as Daddy Warbucks.

I didn’t know then how that night would be the start of a long-time fascination towards performing arts—that only a few months later, I would find myself in an audition room for the 2019 run of “Matilda”. At the time, all I knew was that the music made me happy and that a dog acting on stage was extremely cool.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2017)

To be frank, I don’t remember much about ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’, so if given the task to rank all of these shows, you might find it a bit low. But, nonetheless, just like all the others yet to be mentioned, the unified effort put into the whole production impressed me. With each step into a show, I found myself more eager to experience the theater life myself—whether backstage or not, I wasn’t sure yet.

Matilda (2019)

‘Matilda’ was my first and last attempt at an onstage role. As an extremely shy kid, I’m not sure how I was able to get through singing in front of so many important people, and explains why I never did again. Its story was inspiring as a kid, because after that, I started to think of the possibility of directing and writing, or anything where my shyness wouldn’t hinder much.

Watching a group of actors my age able to carry out such a lengthy and impressive performance, with amazing choreography and clever use of props, made me believe that I could do something great, as well. ‘Matilda’ would forever be one of my favorites—whether it came down to the original film, live performance, book, or album. I, a quiet kid who buried herself in books and had a hard time speaking up, saw a lot of myself in Matilda. So despite not getting to play her character on stage, I at least lived a part of her in the real world.

Ang Huling El Bimbo (2023)

Ang Huling El Bimbo, my all-time favorite and first watch after the drawn-out pandemic. Watching this through a screen was beautiful enough, but seeing it with my own two eyes and hearing the music live was a different kind of captivating.

For some reason, their [Eraserheads] songs seemed to perfectly fit events in our lives—providing a sort of soundtrack that we fondly remember many years later.

Merwin Tee, Music Publisher [AHEB Playbill - pg. 6]

AHEB was simple yet heart-wrenching. The simplicity of the script that came off so naturally the actors’ tongues is what made the story feel so raw and humane. It portrayed the many truths of life, specifically in contemporary Manila, which included all of the good and bad. AHEB’s story is not only of the characters’ but also of many Filipinos out there.

Seeing my own culture on stage and hearing the language I speak everyday play a massive role in the delivery of a beautiful story was moving and even inspired me in my own project (see pictures below).

Bawat Bonggang Bagay (2023)

Bawat Bonggang Bagay is a one-man show starring Jon Santos that talks about mental health and the small things that make life worth living for. For example, “amoy ng bagong lutong ulam”, or it could also be “mga lollipop na iba yung flavor sa gitna”, or even something as simple as “ice candy”. This instills the idea that happiness is everywhere.

BBB was an intimate and interactive gem, held in Zobel De Ayala Recital Hall where it held only a limited number of heads, making it all the more meaningful. The show was successful in making you feel a part of its world, having you sit only a hand-stretch away from the actor and giving you lines to deliver and scenes to participate in.

This is the most unique theater experience I have had, and if ever doors open for a re-run, I highly recommend that you secure your tickets!

Miss Saigon (2024)

This was my first watch of an international cast, and immediately, the richness of the production proved why Miss Saigon is considered a world-class act. My seat may have been a bit far in the steep theater of Solaire, but even from such a distance, I was able to clearly capture the performance with its large-scale designs and magnified acting.

”One piece of advice I think I can impart is just to enjoy every moment of the process of creating the character, but create something that you can call that is absolutely yours.

Lea Salonga’s advice for Abigail Adriano [GMA News]

Miss Saigon, a show that has brought so much pride to the country through the success of Lea Salonga, coming home to the Philippines with several shows was quite a big deal. And seeing both Abigail Adriano (Kim) and Seann Miley Moore (The Engineer) be Filipinos made my heart happy, knowing that the pride Lea Salonga and Jon Jon Briones once brought was carried on.

Miss Saigon was truly beautiful, never letting my eyes drift from the stage.

Buruguduy-stun-stugudun-stuy (2024)

As much as I try to avoid it, it is inevitable to compare this show with Ang Huling El Bimbo, both deriving its soundtracks from popular Filipino bands. Both were touching to the heart but definitely opposites when it came to concept and production.

The title ‘Buruguduy-stun-stugudun-stuy’ was not the only hard thing to comprehend, but so was its story. The show surely matched the chaos of Parokya Ni Edgar songs through its absurd and overwhelmingly packed script. If AHEB was simple and slice-of-life, well…Buruguduy surely is everything but that.

From dancing penises to a lesbian cop x alien couple and so much more, Buruguy had it all. There was not a moment when the stage was empty, so if chaos and color is your thing, then Buruguduy-stun-stugudun-stuy is for you.

Mula Sa Buwan (2024)

Everything about Mula Sa Buwan is still fresh in my mind—the jokes, the kilig, the pain. Although it started off a bit slow with the dialogue feeling too lengthy and dragged on, it definitely picked up once the Cyrano x Christian dynamic was introduced. From then on, the first part of the show was heavily carried by its humor and filled the theater with laughter.

The second part, on the other hand, tugs at your heart. It is the part of the show where war breaks loose, people die, secrets are uncovered, and some of the most painfully poetic lines are delivered. MSB’s use of the Philippine language shows off its beauty and depth.

“It’s a responsibility. In a nation full of fools, misfits, and dreamers…what Mula sa Buwan has always promised is to offer its magic — to believe, to change lives and to bring the Filipino audience together.”

appreciation post muna for @hey-night-dreamer and her ate 🥹 nice meeting youu. sobrang thanks sa araw na 'to, sa treat and all. kahit parang awkward kanina huhu. shy yaarn.

aheb (2023 cast) sticker set <3

You'll get by with a smile

You can't win at everything but you can try

[SPOILER ALERT]

Can I just say I love the subtleness of the musical and how it just tells its message through the storytelling???

It touches a whole lot on the Drug War that the current administration is waging against the poor Filipinos who are more victims than the main perpetrators themselves. The end of AHEB which only shows Joy's death and the subsequent lamentation of her family and old friends as the perpetrator who now holds a political position as a councilor goes scot-free is saddening but feels true with what happens in the Philippines. The people who are at the bottom chain are caught or killed while the ones running things get to sit in their high chair.

I also love how the other three main characters Eman, AJ and Hector represent the three divisions of the Filipino middle class and their actions towards the injustices and aggression Joy, who represents the poor and oppressed, faces tell a lot about their positions and views. When none of them could save Joy from being raped, their actions tell a lot about their position. Their positions in the future also dictates where they came from.

Emman who seems to be part of the lower middle class and is also an activist shouts the hospital, focusing more on comfort although might not do much is the kindest of the choices. Going to the hospital would be a direct action to help Joy who is in distraught atm cope. It's also important to see that although Eman got a government post like he dreamed (to change the system), it's the system that changed him instead. With someone from a poor background and no backing, he works hard everyday and is rarely home because he has to "prove" his worth. His career is banking on how hard he works and he forgets that the reason he dreamed of this in the first place was to help advocate for better change in the Philippines and take care of his family with his wife/sweetheart.

AJ who is at the very middle of the middle class chooses the police instead, relying more on the legal system that probably would seem like a fair judge ( probably to imply his trust on the system who perhaps would be fair to him but unjust to others) and his focus on the social aspect of it, aka how other people would perceive what happened. The middlest middle class whose position on the pyramid is dependent on how others perceive you hits too hard for AJ who becomes a successful businessman. He gets a wife, knowing full well that she would simply be a decoration for him to keep appearances, as he is in fact gay. AJ might know some people here and there but to primarily keep his connections, he has to look the part and in exchange for that, he hurts his wife and continues to hide who he truly is.

And God, Hector, this fucking bastard, I hate him but he represents the Upper Middle Class rhetoric so well. Hector tells everyone to keep quiet, to not do anything, overglorifying Joy's trauma and hardship as her being strong. And that speaks so much about how the upper middle class operates, how it's the upper middle class who rarely if ever listens, because although they might not be as powerful as the Filipino Oligarchs, they are pretty much the people living the "Fiipino Dream" and to keep their position, the upper middle class turns a blind eye to the suffering of the Filipino poor. Hector who had always lived comfortably chose to protect his own comfort even in the face of grave injustice. Hector makes it in life too. He's got the resources and the connections, just enough to get him a famous name as a tv director but being in the upper middle class means you still have to bow your head to those with power, to the great oligarchs who control how things go. You see Hector who is "a famous director", under the orders 'from above' has to make his series about ratings than the story itself. He has to accept people with connections into the movie because despite his position that many Filipinos dream about, he isn't exactly the omnipotent hand that can control everything.