Every once and a while, you come across a production that just blows your mind away. Even though it’s still early in the year, I feel Dulaang UP’s Orosman at Zafira’s is going to be THE production of 2008 for me. After Martin and I saw last Sunday’s production, we just couldn’t stop talking and thinking about it on the ride home. We anticipated the show since December of last year and were completely satisfied upon seeing it last weekend. The show was so intense, you could feel the actors’ and the audience’s “high” afterwards from the intense applause to how the spectators welcomed the cast members who came out to meet the viewers. And remember, this was an original Balagtas (Francisco Baltazar) text!
If I remember my Filipino 14 correctly (Don’t kill me if I get this wrong, Sir Je), Orosman and Zafira was classified as a komedya, a dramatic form popular in the Spanish era of the Philippines. In Ma. Guererro Arnadis’ January 27 article in the PDI (Is the ‘komedya’ politically incorrect?), she presents a quote from National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario: “The komedya is national theater as we know it, it’s what the Kabuki and Noh are to Japan.” A form of the komeyda probably more familiar to some is the “moro-moro”, which would normally showcase a Muslim group and a Christian group encountering a struggle of some sort, with the Christian rising triumphant in the end. I remember Sir Jerry Respeto describing the traditional production, that started with a parade of colors/characters. The presentation and character sterotypes would be so evident in the costumes and movements (eg. marches) that even before the play starts, people would already have an idea of who sides with whom and who the heroes and villains were.
Orosman at Zafira, however, breaks the mold of the traditional komedya. To begin with, there is no clear Christian group or propaganda visible in the material. If anything, it shows the strength, courage, and familial ties in Muslim tradition. It is the struggle of three warring Muslim kingdoms that is followed and not a war between ideologies. If Hamlet covered a single troubled kingdom and Macbeth dealt with struggles between two groups, then O+Z topped Shakespeare with the complex interaction of the three kingdoms. Added to that, the plot not only dealt with power plays, but also threw in there at least two love stories. To top it all off, the piece had a strong feminist feel, with scorned women, Gulnara and Zafira, taking the lead even in war. Remember that all this was written in the 1850’s. Now that’s revolutionary.
Staging of Philippine theater/literary canon need not be boring and traditional and this was clearly demonstrated by DUP’s Orosman at Zafira. If the Japanese can modernize their Noh and Kabuki, why not Filipinos with our Komedya? This makes UP’s First National Komedya Festival, of which O+Z is part, truly noteworthy. The material, modern enough for its time, is brought even closer to the current audience. First, most of the lines in O+Z are wonderfully sung or chanted. Backing this up is a live band: think native gamelan amped up with some heavy drums and electric guitars. The musical lines are reminiscent of fusion or world music— of Pinikikan, Grace Nono, Bayang Barrios, and Joey Ayala’s styles. The accompaniment ranges from traditional to intense rock, yet all bearing a distinct Filipino flavor. The use of Zelima as narrator also works to introduce the scenes’ emotions and events.
The ensemble’s movement by director and choreographer extraordinaire Dexter Santos is simply breathtaking. There were moments (eg. the war scenes) where I would get goosebumps just watching them. The three kingdoms were introduced at the start via musical backgrounds and very specific tribal movements. Their dances would characterize them further along the play and once all three share the stage in the battle scenes, one can just watch in awe.
The set was interesting for the way it accommodated the varied scenes. With a few arrangements of the movable “walis-tingting hedges” there would be garden scenes, battlefields, pond edges, mazes leading into dungeons, and forests. Bungkakas, rainmakers, and kubings would serve as swords, cudgels, and daggers providing additional sounds and rhythms making the battles even more intense. Leaves blowing through the battle scenes added to the movement and chaos. The staging may have been small, but the visuals were still stunning.
The cast, from the leads to the chorus, looked so immersed in their roles. The passion they brought into the scenes was palpable. There were some stand-out performances, of course. For me, JC Santos’ Zelim was fierce and compelling. To be able to sing, dance, and do acrobatics like he did was just a feat. Of course, I was so excited in seeing Maita Ponce as Zafira. Her intensity here is just leagues away from earlier performances as Sinta or as any of the Broadway/musical characters she’s assayed before. I personally haven’t seen her like this before and just seeing my old philo classmate’s amazing performance makes me well up in praise of her craft. Like what Martin said, we’re so proud of you, Maits! We can’t wait to see OZ again before it closes.
The final message of the play hits close to home with the current occurrences in our nation. Orosman at Zafira presents, foremost, a power struggle. The love story of Orosman and Zafira serves as a perfect foil to the pain of death and destruction in war. It shows us the troubles a pursuit of power can bring. Even the way the play was ended was filled with uncertainty and warning. Despite being victorious, Zafira weeps for all their losses. There is a sense of foreboding that there is no end to the struggle for the throne.
I’ve recommended other plays before, but DUP’s OZ is a must-see this year. If you can, go see Maita’s shows as she is terrific:
Feb.20,27,29: 7pm
Feb.23: 10am
Feb.24: 3pm
Feb.28: 730pm
The other shows have Cris Villonco as Zafira and I expect she’ll also be good (based on her performances in Rep’s Fiddler on the Roof and Hamlet). Orosman at Zafira runs until March 2 only, so make sure you catch it! I think they have evening shows Thursday to Saturday and 10am & 3pm shows on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets can be reserved via Ms. Luz de Luna (09176206224). If you want to watch with Martin and me, let me know via text and we can coordinate.
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