Theater actors ‘invade’ the Big Dome

MANILA, Philippines - For 14 years now, the Philippine Stagers Foundation (PSF) under Vincent “Vince” Tañada — director, actor, singer, dancer, writer and incidentally a lawyer — has been coming out with original Filipino musicals, some of which have won Aliw Awards. With music by Pipo Cifra and an ensemble of trained actors who can sing and dance with aplomb, PSF has mounted plays on heroes and martyrs like Ninoy Aquino, President Cory Aquino and even Mahatma Gandhi, and the biblical Moses.

Currently on tour is Filipinas 1941, a World War 11 drama with just enough comic touches to keep the PSF market — the students — entertained.

And now, Vince is preparing for what is probably his most ambitious undertaking: A concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, in Cubao, Quezon City, featuring the Philippine Stages and still aimed at the youth sector, which will integrate Broadway-West End music, Pop-Western and OPM. At the end, the audience will be called upon to sing and dance along with the performers.

It promises to be a disco-dance-musical which will dwarf the current Here Lies Love in London. But first the young audience must be oriented in the beauty and drama of Broadway-West End musicals.

“It will be quite fun for the audience because we will involve them in the concert,” maintains Vince. “Meaning, we are expecting around 15,000 people and all of them will sing and dance with us!”

Wait a minute, those who watch Broadway shows here and abroad belong to a certain income level. Will this first segment appeal to the young?

“We have incorporated a lot of (attractions) in our Broadway songs,” says the director.

“We have incorporated visuals and AVPs that will delight the audience. We want them to explore Broadway, too. Very seldom do we see these in concerts like this; you will only see Lea Salonga. As theater performers, we breathe Broadway, we eat Broadway for breakfast. So maganda pa rin.”

Vince will romance Cindy Liper in the Miss Saigon excerpt while Patrick Libao, young and handsome, plays Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar. There will also be excerpts from Chicago (playing in Manila in December), Cats, Twilight Express (on roller skates!) and other famous Broadway-West End musicals.

Attire will be casual and comfortable, leaving the colorful costumes to the imagination of the spectators.

The Pop-Western segment will highlight the songs of stars like Beyoncé, John Legend, Jennifer Lopez, Mariah Carey, Bruno Mars and other international entertainers, some of whom have already performed here. Selected Philippine Stagers — in costume this time and using their own voices — will imitate and impersonate top international artists.

The OPM segment will showcase songs from popular groups like The Dawn, Parokya ni Edgar and Eraserheads. Since it is the Philippine Stagers’ 14th anniversary, the group will bring out a collection of songs that were composed for their own original Filipino musicals.

Filling the coliseum and its 15,000-seat capacity in a daunting, if not awesome, task. How do Vince and the Stagers plan to go about it?

“It’s really a challenge for us marketing these plays in various schools for more than a decade,” Vince observes. “In the process, we have produced a lot of screaming fans. So we will invite them to the show and let’s find out if they can fill up the Big Dome.”

He added, “Also, those who have graduated would like to see us again. Our Facebook account (Philippine Stagers Foundation) is very active, with more than 60,000 followers. I have my own vantage @vincetañadavantage, with more than 10,000 followers. We have invited them and we get a lot of interested parties buying tickets.”

After 14 years in the business, Vince’s faith in the Filipino artist has deepened: “I am a Filipino artist and I truly believe in the unlimited power of the Filipino artist. I truly believe we can be original. It is not necessary for me to import or adapt Broadway and West End musicals. We can create our own.”

(Stagers Live at the Big Dome happens on Nov. 24 with tickets at P250 and P1,000.)