MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Nearing the close of the year, the theater scene is pulling no stops. The latest of which is an original Filipino musical by The Barefoot Collaborative, Bar Boys: A New Musical, directed by Pat Valera and Mikko Angeles, which tells the journey of four friends through law school and what lies beyond.
While it is a new musical, the story is based on the 2017 film by Kip Oebanda of the same title. With a few adjustments for the stage and to accommodate the dramatic effect, the strength remains its story. Translating the film meant that there was enough happening to determine which would make the stage. Hence, the musical took the catchy parts of the film and made them hyper, especially in its visual elements.
Because the characters already exists in Kip’s universe, it’s an easy assumption to fixate on how they were established on screen – yet Alex Diaz, Benedix Ramos, Jerom Canlas, and Omar Uddin bring their own flavor into Chris, Erik, Torran, and Josh’s characters, respectively. As the scenes progress and the story deepens, the four’s onstage friendship felt very organic.
Establishing the characters takes much of the show — however done so at the haste of the plot’s midsection — resulting in the affinity earned for the four main characters whose fates are tied by circumstance.
In its duration, you can spot its serious hand in the humor (a political gag, a mocking line to no particular personality, puns in the lyrics) pulling the heavier themes of faith and loss right when it hits the defenseless.
What this take beautifully brings out is the involvement of the parents, guardians, and the support system that is undeniably important for any law student or any student for that matter. Juliene Mendoza delivers a heartwarming portrayal of Paping whose naive optimism drive Erik’s perseverance. Gimbey dela Cruz infuses a balanced take on acceptance and understanding as Torran’s Boss Mama.
Sheila Francisco as Justice Hernandez is a captivating presence whose tough love stems from what is at stake in their profession: buhay, kalayaan, at pag asa (life, freedom, and hope).
As it is a new musical and zoomed in on one industry, the songs burst with legal terms and maxims. However, the music (by Myke Salomon and book and lyrics by Pat Valera) is truly effective when it is done right as demonstrated by “Cross The Line” and “May Singil Ang Pangarap,” the latter of which serves as the challenge and the gamble of how far they’re willing to go for their dreams.
The cast performs with much gusto and full conviction in the chorus numbers, proving they’re more than just background. The ensemble’s full use of gigantified books as both burden and footstep also sketches an imagery beyond the surface.
Most notable is the set design by Ohm David which puts symbols of justice as imposing structures at the stage’s either end. Whether those representations of justice being askew is on purpose must be left to its audience.
Despite its visible attention to the dazzle, Bar Boys is not on the shallow or the trendy end of storytelling. In packing the heavy themes into its runtime, Torran, Erik, Chris, and Josh are not main characters in its conventional sense but the vehicles through which one courses through and against the social issues brought to the Bar Boys stage.
Their performance can easily build a solid case on why it pays to not dwell on stereotypes especially in the field depicted in the Bar Boys universe. The amount of talent and love that has gone into the production all point that it is ripe to cross the finish line.
Superb in being stimulating in sight, sound, and intellect, Bar Boys: A New Musical fleshes out a story beyond law school but one with universal themes of acceptance and faith: Faith in truth, faith in people, faith in you.
Bar Boys: A New Musical is running until November 10 at the Power Mac Center Spotlight at Ayala Malls Circuit Makati.
