Fritz was worried. He felt that watching Altar Boyz on my 23rd birthday may not be a very good way to mark the occasion. Since I value the opinions of my elders, I reconsidered the opinion of the blog community’s other resident rock star and tried to further delve into the wisdom of actually watching a play about *gasp* a christian boy band. Everybody knows that Gibbs is like a god – who actually exists (!) — around these circles and his opinion would probably be the hard-fast rule in just about everything related to Philippine theater so I approached him for his insights. As expected, his advise was vague and instead of helping me make a decision, it left me more confused. He told me that the religious allusions were all tongue-in-cheek and I still had a sense of humor, I should definitely watch the production.

Since I had already told my date that we’ll be cultured for the the night, I decided to watch it despite Fritz’s concerns. When I picked out my ticket, I asked why I was invited. Apparently, I wasn’t invited by Gibbs, Fritz or any blogger who was there watching. They wanted a review from my perspective as an Atheist – in fact Teen Atheist was there too!

When the show started, I was immediately affirmed that yes, it was a good idea to show up and watch it. From the get-go, it was clear what the entire play was going to be about. The five Altar Boyz embodied what catholicism/christianity stands for:

• on one hand, a very diverse cast that including a Chicano orphan (Juan), token Lance Bass/ Steven Gately ( Mark), an otherwise forgettable leader in Matthew, reformed addict and part-time band van driver and surprise surprise, the scion of the holocaust (hey, this is American Entertainment so you know there had to be a Jew somewhere!) Abraham. It’s a subtle reminder that the church reaches out to a lot of sectors.
• just like the real thing it’s trying to allude to, it’s full of frill, frivolities and fluff. Sure, this smoke and mirror show could in fact make people think that something important is going on, but upon closer inspection and further analysis, it’s clear that the substance that is supposedly behind it is practically non-existent. Of course, the campy fun that the Altar Boyz showed was refreshing. They were a joke – a loose yet extremely entertaining coalescence of faith, music and choreography —that didn’t take take themselves seriously. They knew they were not to be taken seriously and just as Gibbs said, it was all tongue-in-cheek. Don’t you wish the other party was like that too?

That being said, I think that the person who wrote Altar Boyz is an unapologetic Atheist who relishes the idea of making fun of the dense and dumb people who would fail to get the entire point of the show. The story starts off with a short introduction on how the band was formed. Clearly, five guys from totally different backgrounds just don’t form a boyband out of the blue, right? With the divine mandate of spiritual salvation clearly imbued upon them by the voice of Jett Pangan – again, a [rock] god who actually exists (!) — the five collaborate to be the Altar Boyz. The rest of the show develops as a struggle to reduce the number of damned souls as detected by the Soul Sensor Dx-12. It’s quite refreshing that religion and science were tied together – the ridiculousness of the combination just gets emphasized even more.

Of course, the number dwindles to zero and everyone is happy that they’re not going to hell. I’m actually scared at the thought that this play could possibly inspire the faith of other people. Seriously though, I’m not ruling. Who am I to overestimate the intelligence of other people? For the most part, the 90-minute show feels like a genuine concert. I’m sure the actors had a work out while singing and dancing through over a dozen songs. The singing isn’t probably the number  one reason for watching this show. It wasn’t that bad, but I guess the dance routines really knocked the wind out of a couple of the performers. It was still pretty effective though, thanks to their commitment to their roles and the exquisitely written lyrics with themes ranging from the politically-incorrect to the downright offensive.

I see the play as a bold statement to mock Catholics in general. I don’t think any one in the theater enjoyed it more than I did. Come to think of it, why did these people invite me? If I didn’t like it, people would get the impression that it was probably too nonsecular to have mainstream appeal. I mean, how many go to the theater to be proselytized, right? Counterpoint to that though, my endorsement could also be a kiss of death. Watching this show could be the one way ticket to their non-existent god’s hit list. So Repertory Philippines, I apologize in advance if I single-handedly destroyed this run.

Altar Boyz

April 4-27, 2008

8:00 PM on Fridays & Saturday 3:30 PM on Saturdays & Sundays

Venue

OnStage

2/F Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center, Makati City

Director

Chari Arespacochaga

Tickets

Orchestra Center P 550.00 Orchestra Side P 350.00 Balcony P 250.00     Subscribe now and save!   For tickets, call 8870710. Or logon to Ticketworld

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Last weekend, Gibbs Cadiz was once again generous enough to give me two tickets to a one-night-only performance of Art. This is the third time I went to the theater due to Gibbs’ kindness - the first two occasions being for the comedy ZsaZsa Zaturnah and Batang Rizal. Going in to the event, I knew little about the show that I was about to watch. All that I had figured out was that Ricky Davao, Michael de Mesa and The Dawn frontman Jett Pangan will be playing a big role in the play. Other than that, I was pretty much in the dark. The fact that it was a Tony Award-winning show did play a big part in convincing me that I should watch the play though.

Fortunately, Art did not disappoint. Translated in Filipino, Yasmina Reza’s comedy about three friends in different stages of the lives captured the universal theme of friendship and compromise. Mar (Jett Pangan) caused a stir when he made a fuss about how one of his friends (Serge, played by Michael de Mesa) bought a two hundred thousand peso painting. What was the painting like? It’s like this.

Did you see that? Haha. To borrow Mar’s words, the painting has white lines over a white background. Yes, all that for two hundred thousand pesos. Serge is an established dermatologist but according to Mar, he was still in no position to pursue whimsical procurements of post-modern art. It’s very interesting how Mar (an engineer by profession) chooses to overstep the boundaries of autonomy and choice by openly and often times rudely criticizing Serge for something that he did on his own volition. Mar reflected a quality that some of our friends have – those that routinely police us to make sure that we do what they think is right and sensible even if it’s already your prerogative. Here’s the painting again:

To Mar, the painting was a piece of shit. He felt so strongly about it that he went as far as laughing in Serge’s face and mocking him for being ripped off. The eminent doctor of course rattled off his insights about art and the value of his aesthetic philosophy in a defensive and condescending tone. We are all so familiar with this type of behavior (heck, even I engage in this sort of practice from time to time). When people seem to not see the purpose and significance of the choices and actions that we do, those being ridiculed often talk down to the unwashed and unsophisticated masses to further prove that we are far superior and evolved compared to their primitive way of thinking.

It’s a start contrast. One is cunning and manipulative who puts on a seemingly diplomatic front to further agitate his adversary. The other is a brash and frank trash talker who leaves nothing to the imagination. And oh, did I mention that these two were friends?

Things are further complicated when the group’s token YES-man enters the scene. Jun (Ricky Davao) is someone most successful people would judge as someone who failed to fulfill his potential. Unlike his two friends, Jun has had a rocky word record. Despite of his already advancing age, he has yet to find stability in terms of keeping a job and financial security. To this day, he is still very dependent on his mother for a lot of his monetary and emotional needs. This is probably why Jun turned out this way. He has lost so much self-esteem and self-confidence to the point that he no longer has his own say. Through the years of emotional and psychological trauma, he has been reduced to someone who simply agrees to what his superiors will tell him.

After talking separately with Mar and Serge, Jun has unwittingly misled both that he was on their side. Jun admired the painting and also conceded to Serge that Mar has already lost his sense of humor. Unfortunately, Jun said virtually the opposite during his conversations with Mar.

I’d like to take this opportunity to share the painting once more…

When all three of them ended up in the same room, all hell break lose. If making white lies, saying half truths, dishing out sarcasm and discussing past events were Olympic events, Serge, Mar and Jun would have given the country our first Olympic gold medal. And yes, all of this was because of a single painting!

With two stubborn professionals already jockeying for position in the arena of moral ascendancy and intellectual superiority and one malleable and impressionable loser with a history of nervous breakdowns, the whole shebang about the painting takes the backseat as the discussion meanders to personal histories of unsophistication, one’s general disapproval for someone else’s spouse and an over-blown analysis of how the act of wafting cigarette smoke can be correlated to poor breeding and bad manners. It’s a riot!

And yes, they’re friends. Just like in real life, people have their own quirks. Some are easily swayed by fads and trends while some are biased towards empiricism. Some would go the extra mile just to keep the peace while some will rattle cages and ruffle feathers without any hesitation. With Art, the interplay of personalities and characters are further nuanced. It makes one wonder, do friends choose each other or do they stick together just because they’re the ones who could tolerate the other?

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Watch the author literally have the worst time of his life. Can you even see me in this picture?

This must be Gibbs Cadiz and Karla Maquiling’s idea (of Pinoy Centric) of a joke. What started out as an invitation for one lazy afternoon at the theater rapidly evolved into an impromptu mini-workshop that nobody anticipated. Gibbs’ press release was that the handful of people who signed up for the event would be treated to a tour of PETA’s theater at New Manila prior to watching a matinee of Batang Rizal. Well, nobody told us that the tour would also comprise of a crash course through Northern Luzon ethnic musicology, basic theater, posing, improv and impromptu costume designing. I don’t really know if the fact that I only knew a few of the people in attendance (Coy, Jeff, Poyt and Joe).

Again, it sucked. I am not not cut out for theater and I was obviously going through the motions. Damn, I hate you Gibbs.

Aside from the torturing us *ehem* shy theater excursionistas, the people from PETA also showed off their theater building. Apart from their flexible and morphing stage and show space, the building also has nooks that can serve a multitude of purposes. The building also features a well-stocked library that contains plenty of theater material. If you feel like reading any of the books that PETA has in its possession, you are free to check it out during office hours at weekdays. There is also no shortage for rehearsal and lecture spaces. Almost every floor landing, room and corner can double as a meeting venue, practice nook or lecture hall. The building simply morphs into which ever purpose PETA chooses for every particular and occasion.

After really crying not to vomit while doing all the exercises and (kitang kita naman sa mga pictures na napipilitan lang ako) we were ushered into our seats for the Batang Rizal matinee. The play touches on the interactions between the children today and the Philippines’ National Hero in his younger days. It’s easy to assume that Rizal was used to the pomp and pageantry that comes with being a well-celebrated national figure, but in his teens, Rizal was just like the average boy. He was wide-eyed and idealistic. He had the boldness that seemingly suggested an aura of immortality and indestructibility. But despite this self-assuredness, he was humble enough to admit to himself that he has tons to learn.

In the play, the juxtaposition between the children of the the new millennium and the young Rizal of the 19th century was very telling. Rizal was clutching the very core of his being Filipino to the last few straws of nationalism and pride while the children of the present took their liberty in scoffing at just about everything pertaining to history. Rizal truly was ahead of his time and this was better emphasized with the way the children looked – really kiddie and carefree — as opposed to Rizal’s dignified, stiff and ahead of his time (both in years and maturity).

Of course, this could have been conveyed by a movie. Yes, granted, the movie would have been visually compelling as well. But there’s something about theater that makes the message more lasting and significant. The medium of theater and live acting is very ephemeral, once the moment is lost, it’s lost for good. The next performance will not necessarily be similar to the last one, nor will the cast remain the same for the next installment. Each run, each performance will be marked with its own flavor and that variable makes the message more likely to leave an impression – an imprint that the visitor would take after watching the show.

I guess that’s the value of theater. The medium is so organic – so real and palpable that you just can’t help but think (and perhaps overthink) about the underlying concepts and topics. Theater’s not for everyone, but for those who would like to challenge themselves into thinking and dissecting what a playwright is telling you, I highly recommend it.

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