From the beginning of the show, you are propelled into a world of comedy and romance. I won’t go into the details on what happened in the play, cuz I think the movie and play speak for itself already, and there are summaries and reviews floating around the net.  Also I wont compare the movie and the play since both are different in ways. What I will write here is from the perspective of an artist. I am writing this experience as a way of  specially thanking Ms. Daisy Ba-ad and Ms. Michelle Simtoco for introducing me to the world of theatrical arts and musicals, to which I now enjoy very much from the very bottom of my heart. Also, I’m dedicating this to the Siddhartha cast family also, since they can’t be here to watch it with me

Where to start, there’s so much to say about the musical. It’s everything an artist could hope or wish for, and to top it off, IT’S IN BROADWAY! I was already propelled out of my seat and into another place. I have forgotten that I was in a theatre was now in Greece!

Lets start with the location. The theatre was completely full, and this has been running more than 10 years and still draws a sold out crowd. The theatre was amazing, from the orchestra seats to the box seating on the side wall and balcony seating on the 2nd floor, everything was high-top class. If you saw from those movies where inside the theatre it’s like a classical/contemporary setup, it’s really true to the every aspect from where I went. I was seated real close to the stage, 4th from the from the front seat and center seat from both sides, so I had one of the best view/seat in the house, right at the center =D

The music…well it was live band! No kidding! There was even a conductor and SHE was leading the orchestra/band while they play the music/songs. The band was under the stage but can be seen from the outside. What we did in Cebu was pre-record the numbers for the production, but here, it was live. I was so impressed. Next the lapels, I COULDN’T FIND IT!! lol I tried to look for the mics but it was really hidden from sight, I did notice something in there left or right ear that was skin colored, hmm.. maybe that was it =p

Now their voices, I LOVE their voices! So intense, so crystal clear and beautiful!! You can really feel them what their singing about, from joy and happiness to anger, to sadness and distraught. I cried on one of those sad acts, I think it was “Knowing Me, Knowing You” act. As what Ms. Daisy said, project your voice and always show the truth. Oh, Peirce Brosnan has nothing on this show, the guy playing Sam Carmichael in the play was better than Pierce in the movie XD

The props… what else can I expect from Broadway. Top notch props! It was simple and minimal, just like from Siddhartha production. Sometimes there was just a bed on the stage and some table, others there was a wall as the house and some tables for the restaurant. Nothing too fancy but it does the job. Oh, there were also some nice props, e.a. elevating platform, two rotating walls that automatically re-arranges themselves to form the outside of the house, Sophie’s room, inside of a bar, etc. , which I really liked by-the-way All the props were constantly reused, so don’t expect that just because its Broadway they don’t reuse and recycle props Also, as far as I can remember, there was only ONE black-out, and that was during the intermission, I was so impressed. The location change and props were done in front of the audience, not as obvious but they did it as part of the play. When a main cast or supporting cast comes in, they are already bringing the props they or the whole group would need, from simple tables and chairs to liquor trolley. When transitioning from one scene to the other, one side of the stage the main cast is acting, the other side of the stage the supporting cast were already starting to change the props as they come in in-character.

Dance numbers were very well choreographed, I wouldn’t say everyone were in sync since its a musical and that’s not the point. The use of angles also, I was able to spot it right away hehe, may it be with the body and/or props used to point to the person or location that we were supposed to focus our attention to. Maybe to a normal viewer they wouldn’t notice this at all but after going through Ms. Daisy, I was able to spot some of these right away, I wouldn’t say all

Spacing was really well thought out, there were no empty spaces in the stage in large groups! If there is space in one spot that’s unoccupied, at least one or two is standing there to keep it occupied, or there are some props standing there in its place… may it be a bed, tables and chairs. I could still remember Ms. Daisy shouting to use all the spaces on the stage haha

Professionalism between the cast is really there, may it be dancing, kissing, body language  etc… _strictly_professional_. And one thing, when they go all the way, _they_go_all_they_way_ with there acting, from dancing to touching each other… and with no malice intended, when a scene requires them to touch “some” body parts, they do it, I’ll leave it to you to understand what I meant

Last but not the least, everyone enjoyed the show!!… not just the audience but also the casts. So its very true… from the simplest of productions to the most grandest of production in Broadway and to Paris… ENJOY.

Too bad I couldn’t meet the cast after, they didn’t come out but I was very happy that night. This was a night I will never forget for the rest of my life =)

Here are some pics I took before the show..I didn’t take any photos during the show =p

The hospitality we were given in Taiwan was amazing! No words can describe the love and care the people there gave us, from the arrival in Taipei airport to the accommodation in Pu Men Temple was overwhelming! Everything was given to us on a silver platter, so to speak. We were treated like celebrities!

We had four shows in Taipei, in Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall. What an experience it was! Where do I start? First, the make-up artist… what can I say, they were real professionals!! You couldn’t find that kind of fast service in the Philippines! From the way they start applying the makeup to finishing touches were very impressive! Oh, and they don’t just apply makeup then forget about you. They stayed at the sides of the stages to retouch the makeup when you exit the stage! Now that’s professionalism!

We were treated to some sight seeing tour around Taipei afterwards. One small problem… time management. We were always late in gathering and assembling, hahahah, other than that, the tour was a total blast!! After two days of rest, we had to travel to Kaohsiung for another show there. We passed by a temple built in the center of Taiwan, I think it was called Fo Guang Shan Lucky Mountain Temple.

A little history, it was build at the center of Taiwan, a city called Taichong, so that travelers, going from south to north, can stop by the temple for an overnight stay. The temple is really large and the accommodation were not bad. Of course its not a hotel, but it was good enough for an overnight stay. On the way to Kaohsiung, we were treated to a theme park, thank god its was cloudy or we would have sweat all over.

In Kaohsiung, we stayed in Fo Guang Shan. It’s like Vatican City in Christianity. Fo Guang Shan spanned three mountains and has its own hotel, a university for the monks, cafeteria, TV station, temples, and more! We stayed in the Bamboo Inn, named after the bamboos, of course. I wont talk about the sites in Fo Guang Shan, it will take up a lot of space in the blog =p

The show was in the city proper of Kaohsiung. It took a 45min bus ride to the hall. First thing observed was that the hall was not as big as Taipei, but in the end everything went as planned.
Venerable Master Hsing Yun watched the second play on Saturday and everyone was at their best! How many times in a life time can someone meet a person who is an equivalent of the Pope! The energy in the air was so strong, when he speaks everyone was dead silent! We also had another meeting with Venerable Master Hsing Yun the following day in a conference room. Oh the joy of it all! We were given autographed pictures of him!! Well a 1-on-1 picture would have been better but this was close enough and I’m very happy. Plus a bonus, he hinted that he may find ways to bring us to Beijing! And not just any concert hall…. THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR PERFORMING ARTS!

Kaohsiung play came and went. Boy do time fly sooo quickly! Our last show was on Wednesday, in Fo Guang Shan. A special show free of charge for the monks in the monastery and other people who couldn’t go out to watch the play. We gave our best and the place was fully packed! We had the show under the evening sky and with some great divine intervention, it never rained!

Impermanence, nothing is permanent at all. This we learned from Venerable Master Hsing Yun. We soon had to leave the beautiful Fo Guang Shan and go back to Taipei for our trip back to Cebu. *SIGH =’(* We missed all the monks that gave all their love and care when we were in Fo Guang Shan. People cried when we left as we left for Taipei. Because of them, our stay was very memorable and heart warming… memories that will last a life time!

When my college has life ended, I thought that those days of class presentations has finally ended… Oh the irony of life! Little did I know that two years later I would soon be a part of one of the largest successful production in Cebu.

Almost a year ago, I was called to a meeting at a Chinese temple. I was part of the youth group in that temple. Not knowing what to expect, I complied to meet with the masters, aunts and uncles. Little did I know that this day would be one of those life changing event in my life. Me and some members of the BLIA youth were asked to auditioned for a play that is in production! Oh those haunting memories in school came back! With some hesitations and further persuasions from the adults, I gave it a chance. One reason was just to stop them from nagging at my ears and another reason was that I was also a bit curious. One thing led to another, and soon enough I and four other BLIA youths were included in the cast for the musical play of Siddhartha.

At first, I can’t even come to imagine me dancing, acting and singing in front of THOUSANDS of people! I can’t even do my lines properly in class plays, much more on a large stage!

Rehearsals came and went, and sooner than I thought I can now actually dance at par to some people in the cast! All those practices really came through. Plus the constant training from the director, Ms. Daisy Baad, got me to come out of my shell. Waterfront came and went, I can’t believe what I went through. It pretty much felt really good to do something I thought I would never do in front of thousands of people! I could see everyone enjoyed the play pretty much, in and outside the stage.

We were soon invited to play in Manila! Not just any place, but the world renowned CCP! At first I didn’t get why my new family (the casts) got so excited about. Yah, it’s an old stage….so what? Later did I know that not just anyone gets to present in CCP in front of a crowd! Musicians dream of the day to present in CCP, and we were presented this chance on a platter. World renowned musicians and actors had stood on the very stage we were going to present.

Everyone was very excited, since everything was already prepared and set for us to present there. You can say that we were “pampered to death” from the people in Manila. Not that we are complaining, but we were so thankful for their hospitality. Some of the cast’s dream came true as we stepped into the large stage that is the CCP.

Now, the Taiwan show is growing nearer, I have now been asked to take the role of an understudy of Channa, the servant of Siddhartha. One for major roles in the play!!! What an experience it has been for the whole year. From just a simple dancer, now I’m handling and trying to learn the role of a major cast!

As for me, the whole experience was well worth the pain and late night rehearsals. Just by playing minor roles in the play really taught me the value of teamwork and hard work. No one is less important than the other. This what really struck me most. Everyone was really important, from the tiniest role to the main cast of the show. If one is missing, the whole play is derailed or even incomplete because of that one single role, no matter what role he/she does. Life is more or less the same. We all play major roles in our everyday life; from our home, to our school, to the office. If we disappear, we not only affect the lives that are connected to us, our family, but also out friends, co-workers and others.

Having the chance to take the role of a royalty, a jester, a charioteer, and an ascetic made me think that life is more than the daily events that you come to know and do everyday. Life is a stage, and we are the main cast of our very own play that is our life. Take the opportunity, take risks, do things that you never thought you could! Reach for your dreams, be someone. Who knows? You may be also be a main cast in someone else’ play in life.

So… Taiwan, and hopefully the world, here we come!!!

Well… there it is.. I’m a complete mess and about to go over the edge and have a complete nervous breakdown…. (X__x)!!

P.S.: K, now I know how you felt a few months ago!! XD

I’m still contemplating on what to commission him to do a work for me. Maybe a tekken character I like or some classic cartoon both of us enjoys to maybe an anime character I like. I’m in no hurry but have to decide quick while he still has time for me

One of his classic cartoon works…

….and if you like them, you can ask him to commission some works for you…

P.S. I’m not getting any from him for advertising. What are friends for… =P

( 1935 – 2007 )
“I think a life in music is a life beautifully spent
and this is what I have devoted my life to”
Home Site

I listen to some of his songs, and they’re very good. He will be missed… I know I will…

He died from pancreatic cancer and over a year of treatment.

We all know about Mr. Bean, Rowan Atkinson’s goofy, slow-witted character that acts like a buffoon. The one we saw on TV were just the products of the shows he did in the early years of his profession. I was able to stumble upon some of his early days of stand-up comedy and its very funny!

Here are some youtube videos on one of his stand-up comedy…

There are more, just google around youtube and you’ll find them
You’ll also read about his other works like The Blackadder, saw some and its also hilarious!

Enjoy!

Visit him if you can.
Yani
Yani 2