Repertory Philippines Man of La Mancha
At first, I thought my eyes were deceiving me— Menchu Lauchengco, Cocoy Laurel and Audie Gemora onstage at the same time? At the end of the no intermission two-hour play, I feverishly scanned the program to find out if I was hallucinating or not. And, true enough; it was a triumvirate of Rep theatre stars coming together at the behest of a Philippine theatre legend—Tita Bibot Amador.
It seems that when Tita Bibot knew she was at death’s door, she asked Cocoy and Audie to help Tita Baby Barredo in putting the show together. And the actors were just the tip of the iceberg. Former and present Rep artists banded together to bring to fruition a Rep production that was last seen at Insular Theater in 1987 with Tita Baby herself playing the role of Dulcinea/Aldonza.
In the notes, one also finds out that the musical, Man of La Mancha, was a favorite of Tita Bibot’s aside from Fiddler on the Roof. And she had chosen it for the 69th season in 2005 because it coincided with the 400th year anniversary of the book, Don Quixote de la Mancha, on which the musical was based. Finally, she thought its message about believing in the impossible dream was a timely one for the country’s citizens.
This is undoubtedly a rare opportunity to see a piece of theatrical history unfolding right before your very eyes. This is the last weekend of Repertory Philippines’ Man of La Mancha at Rep’s Globe Theater, Onstage Greenbelt 1. For inquiries, you may call 887.0710, or Ticketworld at 891.9999.
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