Come alive, Charlie Brown!

Now running at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater, RCBC Plaza, 9Works’ masterful staging of the Peanuts comic strip-inspired comedy/musical You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is a joy to watch, and one that should be enjoyed with the family. It’s not often that we get this kind of opportunity — material that adults will remember fondly and enjoy wholeheartedly while the children, no matter what age, can relate to and dissolve in laughter and glee. I brought my three sons, aged 20, 17, and 12; and while it was only my youngest (ironically!) who was truly familiar with the comic books, all three agreed at night’s end that they thoroughly enjoyed! And that’s a “Yea!” from my eldest — the typical, moody, angst-laden 20-year-old.

In the title role, Robbie Guevara suspends disbelief, as garbed in oversized shorts and Charlie’s trademark T-shirt, that he is that insecure five-year-old underachiever we knew Charlie Brown was all about. One wonderful thing about this six-man-cast play is that all the characters get their turn in the spotlight. Carla Guevara-Laforteza’s Lucy is pitch-perfect for crabbiness and being a “know it all.” Sally, as portrayed by Sweet Plantado-Tiongson, has her Philosophy song and her coat hanger sculpture as her highlights. Franco Laurel plays Linus and has one intricately choreographed number, with his blanket as “partner.” Tonipet Gaba’s Schroeder was my youngest’s favorite, thanks to his school report on Peter Rabbit. And as for Snoopy (Lorenz Martinez), his turning the arrival of his filled food bowl into a full production number was a righteous howl.

Directed by Michael Williams with Toff de Venecia as assistant director, and taking over the role of Linus from Feb. 25 till the end of the run first weekend of March, the play is a loose collection of vignettes and walk-on lines that literally bring alive frames of the comic strip we’ve loved though the years. The set design of Mio Infante is a virtual child’s wonderland, with everything oversized — from pencils and pads to benches and lunch bags — making it that much easier for us to immerse into the Peanuts world.

First staged in Broadway in 1971, there is something naive and innocent about the play’s “book,” and structurally, I would have liked a more flowing, organic narrative — but that’s just me talking, as I really enjoyed the longer, extended pieces. Of course, my 12-year-old Luca loved how these throwaway lines were verbatim from the comic strip, and reminded me that the audience so loved these snippets!

Impeccable casting and performances, laugh-out-loud lines and situations, bringing us something both fresh and nostalgic at the same time, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is one truly enjoyable evening... and it’s always fun to watch something that so potently reminds us what happiness is all about!

That’s Lincredible!... and too bad for us?

He was born in LA, played high school ball in Palo Alto, then donned the Harvard jersey in college (and graduated), signed by the Golden State Warriors after being ignored in the draft, then cut, picked up and dropped by the Houston Rockets. And now the hero of the New York Knicks and included in the Rising Stars game of the ongoing All Star Weekend, Jeremy Lin is “The NBA” story of this 2011/2012 season.

With Taiwanese parents who are both 5-ft.-6-in., who emigrated to the United States in the mid-1970’s, Lin seemed to have come “out of nowhere” unlike the trumpeted arrival of Yao Ming to the NBA, and has captured the hearts and minds of not only basketball fans all over the world, but everyone who dreams big, and is a pushover for the “perseverance pays” story!

Now don’t get me wrong, as I am in awe of the Lin story and am happy for him; but there is a hard nugget of regret that tells me here is another example of us Filipinos missing the boat, and just not getting it right. Let’s be honest, we Filipinos are so cocky about our basketball skills, feeling that pound-for-pound and inch-for-inch, we excel in the sport. And now, here comes Jeremy, who’s all of 6-ft.-3-in. (not a behemoth like Yao, which was our default excuse for not being the first Asian to make a significant mark in the NBA), and would be stepped on in most one-on-one situations — he admits that himself! More in the mold of cerebral player, who makes full use of his limited skills (think Steve Nash or Goran Dragic), Jeremy has shown how hard work on fundamentals, court awareness, high basketball IQ and sheer determination can find its place on an NBA court. And I’m left wondering where is the Filipino who will blaze a trail and play in the NBA!

Come on, this has been our pipe dream for decades now, but the ones homegrown make it as far as the NBA D-League, and the Fil-Ams are too ready to fly here and make the quick killing. It seems we have the requisite skills at some point in these players’ young careers, but the discipline required — the basketball IQ that is a must — has not materialized in any of our celebrated hoopsters. And that frustrates me!

So excuse me for qualifying and semi-bursting the bubble, but while I’ll be avidly following the exploits of Mr. Lin, and seeing him as a sterling inspiration for my kids, I’m also gnashing my teeth, wondering why it couldn’t be a Jeremy Lintas or Jeremy de la Cruz we’re reading about, and having all of Asia celebrate!