How I first encountered the Dreamgirls

My family had a rest house in Baguio when I was growing up. During the long hot summer months, we would normally spend most of the time there. During one of those summer vacations (that went by way too fast when I was a kid), when I was around 11, I would spend the day at the library in Camp John Hay. My mom would drop me off there while she went to Baguio Market for some shopping. It was a wonderful library because aside from the books, they also had a library of records that you could dub onto cassettes and take home with you. And that was how I first encountered Dreamgirls.

As I was searching the music library for different musicals to put unto cassette, I came across a purple LP jacket that had three legs peeping out from the sequined gowns. The title of the LP was Dreamgirls and all it said was "Original Broadway Cast Album." That was enough information for me to take the LP to my recording cubicle to put my headphones on. I was suddenly transported. The first song entitled Move did just that. It transported me to a whole different time and place. I was no longer in Baguio. And I was no longer 11.

I fell in love with Dreamgirls right then and there. My cassette copy that I taped that day got played over and over again until the cassette was no longer useable. And as the musical format changed from LP to CD, I lost touch with Dreamgirls for a while. It wasn’t released on CD until much later and was already out of print on LP. It didn’t matter, because I knew every lyric and vocal harmony on the recording.

When I moved to New York in 1987, Dreamgirls was playing its final performances and I, unfortunately, didn’t’ get to see it. I had opted to go see the new Broadway musicals that had just opened and were the talk of the town – musicals like Les Miserables, Me and My Girls and The Phantom of the Opera. But luckily, Dreamgirls was finally released on CD that year, and I was one of the first to pick up a copy.

Now, here I am, over 20 years after I first heard the recording, directing the musical I have always dreamed of doing. You can say it’s taken 20 years for me to stage this show. Subconsciously, I think I have been working towards this dream. And now the dream is coming true.

The amazing thing is that after 20 years, I still haven’t tired of the music. It is still as electric and energizing as it was two decades ago. And, in my opinion, Dreamgirls is one of the most dynamic musicals to have ever been written. It is also one of the most challenging shows I have ever directed.

For starters, Dreamgirls is wall-to-wall music. You will probably recognize many of the hit songs from the show such as I am Changing (just wait until you hear Bituin Escalante take the song to new heights), We Are A Family, Hard to Say Goodbye, Dreamgirls and I Am Telling You. The show is almost non-stop singing and dancing. Thank goodness I am surrounded by a creative team that continuously wants to take this show a different level.

Andy Alviz’s choreography is constantly exhilarating and vigorous, Gerry Fernandez’s lights always set the mood and atmosphere, Rajo Laurel’s gowns are simply stunning, the additional costumes by Sky Manapat are so distinct and colorful, and Gerard Salonga’s musical direction quite honestly is beyond comparison in this country. I am constantly inspired and honored to be around all these creative people who are the best in their fields.

Another challenge in staging Dreamgirls is the number of costume changes and the amount of time to do them in. The girls change costumes practically for every song but have hardly any time to get into their next outfits. Hopefully, with a battalion of dressers and a heck of a lot of Velcro, it will all work out.

Lastly, the show is relentless in its demands for its performers. The singers on stage hardly ever have time to rest. Thankfully, I am blessed with an amazing cast. The four Dreamgirls are without a doubt the best young rising singers we have in the country. Bituin Escalante (my muse), Anna Fegi (simply amazing), Lana Jalosjos (what a voice!) and Tex Ordoñez (who hits those catastrophic high notes without flinching) make my hair stand on end at every rehearsal with their dynamism and their constant craving for perfection. Joining them are Calvin Millado (trading in this corset and heels for a suit and a tie), Raul Montessa, Jett Pangan and a wonderful young singer named Nyoy Volante, who will alternate with Jett at certain performances. We also have an ensemble of wonderfully gifted and enthusiastic young performers who constantly give 100 percent even if it means sweating to death at rehearsals changing their shirts five times a day. And Miss Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo and Jinky Llamanzares are gracing us with their presence in cameo roles as the Stepp Sisters at the top of the show. As I watch them in rehearsals, I realize why it has taken 20 years for me to do this show. It’s taken 20 years to find a cast as perfect as this.

And in as much as the threat of war hovers above us, and it gets increasingly difficult to produce theatrical productions here, I continue to try and do this and I continue to dream. Our show would not be possible without the generous support of everyone working in the press, most especially The Philippine STAR (on our fourth year of a beautiful partnership) spearheaded by Mr. Max Soliven, Mr. Miguel Belmonte, Ricky Lo, Millet Mananquil and Doreen Yu. Also our corporate sponsors PLDT myDSL, Bayo, Intercontinental Manila, the official hotel of the Dreamgirls, Weave, Soundcrew, Raymund Isaac, MBC, [email protected], Citilite 88.3, Bellstar Promotions, D’Sharp, King Philip, Maidenform, Dish, Aquasure, Bars and Square, Dominos, Greenwich, Goldilocks, Wendy’s, Kainan ni Tisay, Tapa King, Luna, Tapas-Tapas, Steak Factory, Hoshi, Fanny Serrano, VS Sarabia, Avon and Powermac who support our productions time and time again. Last and not least, our loyal and enthusiastic audiences and show buyers who come many times more than once and send us emails and letters of encouragement and support. Thank you for believing in the necessity of theater as an important form of entertainment.

Sometimes, dreams may take 20 years before they come true but the important thing is just that dreams do come true.

(Dreamgirls opens tonight at Onstage Greenbelt and runs until April. For tickets, contact Atlantis Productions at 892-7078 or at Ticketworld at 891-5610)