Tanghalang Ateneo's 'Sintang Dalisay' returns on stage

MANILA, Philippines - After placing second in the Teatralny Koufar International Student Theatre Festival in Minsk, Belarus and receiving a standing ovation on the festival’s last day, Tanghalang Ateneo’s Sintang Dalisay has returned to Ateneo de Manila University’s Rizal Mini Theatre where it was staged in July 2011.

Sintang Dalisay is a dramatic piece forged from the awit, Ang Sintang Dalisay ni Julieta at Romeo, written in 1901 by G D. Roke and from Rolando Tinio’s translation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, broke new grounds last year in the staging of classical works using traditional performance styles.

The adaptation is localized and set in Sempurna, an imaginary Muslim community, with the Mustafas and the Kalimuddins as two prominent families mired in an age-old hatred for each other. Caught in this family strife are Rashiddin and Jamila, two lovers, secretly married, who are forced to separate from each other after Rashiddin kills a member of the Kalimuddin clan to avenge the death of his cousin. A demand for justice, Rashiddin’s exile to Dapitan, a clandestine tryst, a missing letter and a scheme that goes awry culminate in the death of the lovers and the reconciliation of the two families smothered in grief and regret.

The stylized rendition of the verse is supplemented by movement drawn from the igal, the dance tradition of the Sama people, a performance style that parallels the swaying of palm trees and the flow of sea waves. While stage performances using traditional performance styles are not new in Philippine theater, what makes Sintang Dalisay unique is its learning process. The usual practice is to have a non-native choreographer/dance expert handle movement styles. In this production, the dance (and the music) was taught by indigenous artists from Tabawan, Tawi-tawi who also oversaw the ways the actors improvised their moves from basic igal dance patterns. On the other hand, much of the fight scenes showcase silat, an indegenous martial art.

Ricardo Abad, who shaped the performance text together with Guelan Varela-Luarca, directs the production. Matthew Santamaria choreographs, and Pedro Abraham Jr. does the music and sound design, aided by the Kontra GaPi and the Tanghalang Ateneo Traditional Music Ensemble. Meliton Roxas Jr. handles lights design. David Fabros works on graphic design for the rerun, and the production has kept the original designs of the late National Artist Salvador Bernal for costumes and set.

Kalil Almonte and Nicolo Magno play Rashiddin while Tasha Tañada and Ia Solis essay the role of Jamila. The rest of the ensemble, doubling as chorus members and characters in the play, has increased since last year’s production and includes new cast members.

After being toured to Subic, Bohol, UP Asian Center and Far Eastern University in addition to Minsk, Belarus, Sintang Dalisay runs at the Ateneo de Manila University’s Rizal Mini Theatre until Aug. 17. For inquiries, call or SMS Regina Aquitaña at 0915-1129301.