‘Bongga Ka, ’Day!’: Atasha Muhlach proves naysayers wrong as Annie Batungbakal
MANILA, Philippines — After facing online bashing in the weeks leading up to her first lead role in a musical, Atasha Muhlach got to prove the naysayers wrong during the successful opening night of “Bongga Ka, ’Day!: The Annie Batungbakal Musical” at the Newport Performing Arts Theater (NPAT) on Friday.
In the elaborate production with multiple moving parts, yet tightly staged under the direction of Chris Millado, Atasha embodied the titular character, Annie B — the dispatsadora or shop assistant from Frisco — with wide-eyed charm and surprisingly sharp comedic timing.
She also had palpable onstage chemistry with both of her leading men — Sam Concepcion as Romer, the playboy heir to the House of Pasion, whom Annie develops a crush on, and KD Estrada as her neighbor and first love Burn, a folk-rock musician.
More importantly, Atasha showed what weeks or months of serious preparation could bring to the stage. Cliché as it may sound, but it wasn't hard to see that she put her heart and soul into the performance. The STAR learned that she worked with four coaches — for vocals, acting, dancing and speech — to best flesh out her role in the musical, which draws from the ’70s Manila Sound music of the iconic band Hotdog.
Among those who witnessed that preparation up close was veteran singer and vocal teacher Sweet Plantado of The CompanY. In a social media post addressed to the actress-singer after the opening night, Plantado wrote: “I am witness to how hard you’ve worked for this role, your preparations, the ups and downs, but you soldiered on.”
“Seeing you on stage doing what you’ve always dreamed of doing, shining, giving your all and enjoying... I’m beyond proud of the actor and person you’ve become!” she also posted.
Atasha likewise earned praise from her castmates. John Lapus, who was a delight in the dual roles of Tarurit, owner of the Coco Banana disco bar, and Tito Tambay, the neighborhood bully who pesters Annie, told The STAR after the show, “We’re so happy and we’re so proud of Atasha, kasi galing siya sa sakit and yet andito siya, and did a great job on our opening night.”
“We’re so happy. Thank you, Lord! Thank you sa aming audience na na-appreciate kami nang bonggang-bongga,” he added.
Atasha with Sam Concepcion as Romer, the playboy heir to the House of Pasion, whom her character, Annie, develops a crush on
Dad Aga’s reaction to critics
For Atasha’s father, Aga Muhlach, the opening night also turned into an opportunity to speak for the first time about the criticism his daughter received even before audiences could see her in action.
Aga told this writer that he had deliberately kept mum while the controversy played out. But the former matinee idol admitted that Atasha “went through a lot" and that "there was a lot of pain there."
His only advice to her was: “Just work, have fun… Be nice always. Take care of your heart. Always, always!”
“Mahalin yung trabaho n’yo. Mahalin n’yo yung mga nagmamahal sa inyo,” he added.
As for the haters, Aga said he advised Atasha to “let them be, you don't need them in your life."
"Haters are gonna hate, so okay na ’yan,” he continued. “Mas madami yung nagmamahal. Mas maraming mabubuting tao ngayon kay sa mga ganyan. So, you know, I’m happy na nakakapagsalita tayo ngayon because I’ve been quiet about this.”
“Wala naman kaming sasabihin sa kanila,” he further said. “Pero sa mga nagsalita ng masama sa anak ko, patawarin kayo ng Panginoong Diyos. Mahal pa rin namin kayo.”
When asked if he had been hurt by the “attacks” against his daughter, Aga answered, “Yeah! Although wala akong nabasa, sinabi lang sa akin.” After years in the industry, he considered the attention and questions surrounding Atasha’s casting as something that came with a major project.
“And then, I just saw my daughter. I saw what she went through sa bahay namin…Sabi ko, ganun talaga. 'Pag may malaking proyekto, talagang kaiinggitan ka. Hindi nawawala sa industriya, hindi nawawala sa mundo ’yan.
"'Pag may magandang nangyayari sa isang tao, hindi karamihan, konti lang ’tong mga taong ’to, hihilahin ka pababa. At least, pinapansin ka!”
He reiterated that the best reaction to things like that was to do your job.
“We’re here to entertain. We’re not here to hate,” he said. “Hindi lang mga talento kami. Binabayaran kami para maghanapbuhay, para mag-perform. So, it’s just our responsibility.”
The veteran star further shared that he was excited, certainly not nervous, to watch Atasha “work” on opening night because he knew what she was capable of.
“I know my daughter so well, so hindi ako takot,” Aga said.
“Kay Andres, ninerbiyos ako,” he quipped, referring to his son Andres’ first theater foray via “Bagets the Musical” earlier this year. “Kay Atasha hindi, she knows this… sparring partner ko yan.”
The opening night wasn't also about proving her haters wrong, according to Aga.
“She’s happy, she’s excited tonight, and, you know, there’s gonna be a lot of weekends, not to prove, but just to work,” the proud dad said.
Return to Musical Theater
Mom Charlene Gonzalez, meanwhile, was equally excited to see Atasha take on the theater stage for “Bongga Ka, ‘Day!”
“I'm very happy,” she said. “It’s such an honor for Atasha to be able to work and experience, of course, fantastic, talented people in the theater world, so I’m really excited for all of them.”
Asked what advice she had given her daughter for the dance-heavy musical, the former host of dancing shows “Eezy Dancing” and “Keep On Dancing” said, “When it comes to everything that Atasha does, she really puts her heart and soul.”
“The important thing, I think, at this point is to enjoy and have a good time and really relish this moment because something like this doesn’t come (all the time), you know, it comes once in a lifetime. So, just enjoy the moment, of course, and do your best,” she added.
Atasha’s twin brother Andres was not present on opening night because he was in Spain, but Charlene said they would return to watch the musical with him on another date.
According to Charlene, the twins had also been exchanging notes about performing in a huge theater like NPAT.
Co-produced by Viva Communications, The Philippine STAR and Newport World Resorts, with creative direction from PETA Plus, 'Bongga Ka, ’Day!' runs on select dates through Oct. 24 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater.
The production, she also noted, carried particular meaning for the family because Atasha’s earliest experience in musical theater also happened at Newport.
“It’s a sentimental feeling, I think, also for me, for Atasha, for the family because she first started here in Newport in her first theater play, ‘The Sound of Music,’” Charlene recalled.
“She was nine years old when she did ‘The Sound of Music,’ so this is the first time, parang coming back to Newport."
It was also during that production, she further said, that the now 24-year-old Atasha first displayed interest in performing arts.
“First time nung ginawa niya yung ‘Sound of Music,’ that’s where she started to express her interest in arts and in performing,” Charlene said.
“Since then, mula nung bata pa siya, nung first time niya na-express, sabi niya, this is a dream for her. It’s nice to see her dream unfolding now.”
(Co-produced by Viva Communications, The Philippine STAR and Newport World Resorts, with creative direction from PETA Plus, “Bongga Ka, ’Day!: The Annie Batungbakal Musical” runs on select dates through Oct. 24 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater. Tickets are available online, at TicketWorld outlets and at the Newport World Resorts Box Office.)
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