The Virgin Labfest

Kudos to actor Jojit Lorenzo for designing this great poster!

I have to admit, this is turning out to be a great year for the Writers Bloc. First, 10 X 10 X 10 had a successful, albeit unofficial launch at the Conspiracy Café last January. Now, the Bloc and Tanghalang Pilipino are relishing the astonishing success of The Virgin Labfest at the CCP this past weekend. I’m happy that the festival was a hit. Sure, there were a number of factors that made the whole endeavor a success: interpersonal networking, online and print promotion, and word-of-mouth, not to mention the P100 ticket price. Its success proved once again that the Bloc can really stand on its own, though still a little unsteady at times.

Most of the participating plays worked. As text, I’m not too crazy about Elmar’s Serbis, but I have to give credit to Tuxqs Rutaquio for making it effective onstage. As for Ars Poetica, it’s definitely more of Eugene Evasco’s play than Chris’s; its Diliman sensibility is so strong, it’s overwhelming. The premise may be interesting, but I personally, instinctively found it too serious and too talky for its own good. Good thing Allan's Anatomiya ng Pag-ibig doesn’t have that problem. It’s also a good thing that Victor Villareal successfully translated the play’s episodic structure and surreal nature onstage. Even better, Mailes is in it and she’s terrific as always.

I’m satisfied with Ana Valdes-Lim’s staging of Debbie’s Fate’s Line, but there’s no doubt Marj stole the show; she’s so funny as Heidi. Glenn Mas’s soap opera-ish Rite of Passage benefitted a lot from Herbie’s fantastic direction and young Sheenly Gener’s very convincing performance as Isoy’s spinster aunt. But I have to agree with Nick’s observation about the inconsistent focus: at first it seems to be about Isoy, but towards the end it shifts to his aunt.

Vince’s Ateng and Dennis’s Si Geegee at Si Waterina were definitely the two best plays in the festival. Both have wonderful actors who gave terrific performances, both have directors—Phil Noble for Ateng; Roobak Valle for Si Geegee at Si Waterina—who really brought the plays to full, colorful life, and both have hilarious punchlines, especially the second one. Of all the plays presented in the festival, these two were the ones the audience most responded to. Too bad I can’t say the same for Lani Montreal’s Sister-Out-Law, and what I didn’t like about it is how the director, Sigrid Bernardo needlessly embellished a simple lesbian coming-out/Fil-Am story. I may tolerate the male actors—most of them, anyway—performing like screaming fairies, but I really don’t see the point of two pairs of ballet dancers barging in on stage and performing a routine in the middle of the play.

If The Virgin Labfest was like a film festival, I’ll give the following awards to:

· Paolo Cabañero and Lou Veloso of Si Geegee at Si Waterina for Best Actors
· Sheenly Gener of Rite of Passage for Best Actress
· Dudz Teraña of Ateng for Best Supporting Actor
· Marjorie Lorico of Fate’s Line for Best Supporting Actress
· The cast of Anatomiya ng Pag-ibig for Best Ensemble
· Herbie Go of Rite of Passage for Best Director
· Si Geegee at Si Waterina for Best Play

Much as I’m happy that the festival was a success, I’m even more so for Allan, Debbie and Dennis. They now know what it’s like to see their plays being brought to life by a major theater company before their very eyes for the first time. To see the characters they created move and speak, to actually hear the lines they’ve written for them—it’s like magic, and they got to experience that first-hand. I hope the festival encouraged them—and the rest of the Bloc—to keep on writing plays. Who knows, there might be another Virgin Labfest next year. And when that happens, I hope to be a part of it. I would really like to have that magical experience again.