Carrie, Stephen King's first published novel, means a lot to me. It was the first non-required school reading I bought and read myself. It was thoroughly traumatizing and enjoyable in equal measures. And so began my love for reading, and eventually, writing.
I was delighted to find out through Facebook (if memory serves me right) that Altantis Productions was staging a local version of Carrie the Musical. Previously not knowing a Carrie musical even existed, I did some research and read about how it was a flop the first time it was staged so on.
Still, I'm a big fan. I invited one of my reader friends and bought us two tickets to see the play at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium in RCBC Plaza, Makati. Moerover, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo's playing Carrie's mother was also a major factor in my decision to watch. I saw her as Diana in Atlantis Production's 2011 re-staging of Next to Normal, and she was amazing. Since then I've seen her, as many people accurate describe, as one of Philippine theater's most accomplished actresses.
--
Where are all the people? My friend and I asked one another, waiting for the play to begin. We were seated at the last row of the orchestra center section--the most costly seats furthest from the front. We had a good view of the stage, made better by the fact that half of the seats in front and to the side of us were empty. It was confusing because those seats were sold out on Ticketworld weeks in advance.
While our question was never resolved, we were allowed (without asking) to pick any empty seat nearer the stage after the intermission break, which was very nice of the Atlantis Productions staff.
--
Another question: Why is the stage so small? and consequentially: Why is the cast so small? Having previously watched Next to Normal in the same venue, I wasn't surprised or bothered by this. In fact, I love the intimate atmosphere of the theater. I was also impressed by the production design of Carrie the Musical.
There was no moving or revolving stage. Instead, there were three old-school, monochrome television screens, whose contents changed depending on the setting of each scene. There were also convincing levitating scenes in which objects and even Carrie's mother Margaret floated in the air for more than a few seconds at a time.
At first, I didn't get the red light focused on Carrie after a bucket of pig blood gets poured on her at the prom scene. I felt the light distracted from the blood. However, when she reentered the stage to face her mother, the blood was there in all its gore. There was an audible shock from the audience, so the impact was still there. Looking back, I remembered how the red light allowed me to focus on Carrie's emotions, on her face and the rest of her body. No need to see the blood just yet.
--
Speaking of Carrie, I was initially worried when it was announced that Mikkie Bradshaw wasn't playing Carrie. Her alternate, K-La Rivera played the part instead. But since I've never seen Bradshaw act before, I had no one to compare Rivera with, and she was a very convincing Carrie for me. However, I read an article stating that Atlantis Productions had plans to cancel of their shows through the weekend, but I was never informed. Oh well, all's well that ends well.
Having read the book several times and watched the first two adaptations, I was happy that the musical focused more on Sue Snell and her boyfriend Tommy and how they felt being caught in the middle of all the bullying. There's even this poem Tommy writes (and sings), which Carrie loves, and it's just corny in a high school poem kind of way. The musical really downplays the telekenesis (TK), with some scenes in which the uninitiated may not even know any TK is happening (the blinking lights in the ladies locker room, for instance), and focuses more on the bullying and the relationships between characters.
--
I enjoyed watching Atlantis Productions' rendition of Carrie the Musical, especially because of Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo's portrayal of Carrie's mother. It was very subdued and human. While the play may have been even better with a bigger stage, bigger cast, or with Mikkie Bradshaw as Carrie, I thought the musical was great just the way it was. Bradshaw's getting sick may even show how powerful and intense a character Carrie really is.
My Rating:
Official Poster for Carrie by Atlantis Productions (click to enlarge)
I was delighted to find out through Facebook (if memory serves me right) that Altantis Productions was staging a local version of Carrie the Musical. Previously not knowing a Carrie musical even existed, I did some research and read about how it was a flop the first time it was staged so on.
Still, I'm a big fan. I invited one of my reader friends and bought us two tickets to see the play at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium in RCBC Plaza, Makati. Moerover, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo's playing Carrie's mother was also a major factor in my decision to watch. I saw her as Diana in Atlantis Production's 2011 re-staging of Next to Normal, and she was amazing. Since then I've seen her, as many people accurate describe, as one of Philippine theater's most accomplished actresses.
--
Where are all the people? My friend and I asked one another, waiting for the play to begin. We were seated at the last row of the orchestra center section--the most costly seats furthest from the front. We had a good view of the stage, made better by the fact that half of the seats in front and to the side of us were empty. It was confusing because those seats were sold out on Ticketworld weeks in advance.
While our question was never resolved, we were allowed (without asking) to pick any empty seat nearer the stage after the intermission break, which was very nice of the Atlantis Productions staff.
--
The main cast of Carrie (from left to right): Yanah Laurel as Sue Snell,
Markki Stroem as Tommy Ross, Mikkie Bradshaw as Carrie White,
Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo as Margaret White,
and Shiela Valderrama-Martinez as Ms. Gardner (click to enlarge)
Another question: Why is the stage so small? and consequentially: Why is the cast so small? Having previously watched Next to Normal in the same venue, I wasn't surprised or bothered by this. In fact, I love the intimate atmosphere of the theater. I was also impressed by the production design of Carrie the Musical.
There was no moving or revolving stage. Instead, there were three old-school, monochrome television screens, whose contents changed depending on the setting of each scene. There were also convincing levitating scenes in which objects and even Carrie's mother Margaret floated in the air for more than a few seconds at a time.
At first, I didn't get the red light focused on Carrie after a bucket of pig blood gets poured on her at the prom scene. I felt the light distracted from the blood. However, when she reentered the stage to face her mother, the blood was there in all its gore. There was an audible shock from the audience, so the impact was still there. Looking back, I remembered how the red light allowed me to focus on Carrie's emotions, on her face and the rest of her body. No need to see the blood just yet.
--
Speaking of Carrie, I was initially worried when it was announced that Mikkie Bradshaw wasn't playing Carrie. Her alternate, K-La Rivera played the part instead. But since I've never seen Bradshaw act before, I had no one to compare Rivera with, and she was a very convincing Carrie for me. However, I read an article stating that Atlantis Productions had plans to cancel of their shows through the weekend, but I was never informed. Oh well, all's well that ends well.
Tommy singing his poem/song Dreamer in Disguise as performed by the cast of
Carrie the Musical in their Premiere Cast Recording
Having read the book several times and watched the first two adaptations, I was happy that the musical focused more on Sue Snell and her boyfriend Tommy and how they felt being caught in the middle of all the bullying. There's even this poem Tommy writes (and sings), which Carrie loves, and it's just corny in a high school poem kind of way. The musical really downplays the telekenesis (TK), with some scenes in which the uninitiated may not even know any TK is happening (the blinking lights in the ladies locker room, for instance), and focuses more on the bullying and the relationships between characters.
--
I enjoyed watching Atlantis Productions' rendition of Carrie the Musical, especially because of Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo's portrayal of Carrie's mother. It was very subdued and human. While the play may have been even better with a bigger stage, bigger cast, or with Mikkie Bradshaw as Carrie, I thought the musical was great just the way it was. Bradshaw's getting sick may even show how powerful and intense a character Carrie really is.
My Rating:
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