The Carver's House

The original soundtrack of the Zaturnnah musical is now available through Tanghalang Pilipino. It has two versions--one with Arnold Reyes and Agot Isidro as Dodong and Queen Femina, respectively, and the other with Lauren Novero and Kalila Aguilos. It's P350 a pop. If you want to order a copy, you can call Tanghalang Pilipino through 8323661 for details. Music, lyrics and musical arrangement by Vincent A. de Jesus . Apart from 21 tracks from the musical, the colection contains two bonus minus-one tracks of Ada's Ayoko Nang Mabuhay Nang Ganito, and Dodong's Ikaw ang Superhiro na Buhay Ko . Plus Zaturnnah's "transformation" music. - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Philippine Daily Inquirer's Gibbs Cadiz reviews the musical here . Scroll down that page--it comes after reviews of Dulaang UP's Gabriela and PETA's Pinoy Wannabes .

I don't read novels much, much less those like Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha . But I love Michelle Yeoh and Gong Li, so I went to see the movie adaptation. I emerged from the Podium theater two and a half hours later feeling half-robbed. I've never seen a Rob Marshall film, not even his Oscar-winning Chicago , but I think many will agree that he's not the best choice to helm Memoirs . The best director should have been one who could dissect the Asian psyche and make it accessible. Then again, Memoirs could've benefited from a less flowery script, and even less two-dimensional motivations. In my book, there's hardly any weight in this film, and too much production design. On the lighter side, Gong Li is gooorrgeeoouusss. She made the ticket price worth my while. Too bad her first foray into Hollywood didn't turn out to be the masterpiece it's meant to be. She deserves the "I will make you believe that I understand what I'm saying" awa...

I skipped work today--wasn't feeling that well. Must've been that overnight stay at the office to meet deadlines. Working long hours alone at an office isn't new to me, but I could do without hearing fingers gliding across a keyboard from another cubicle at four in the morning. Went to the mall to get some medication. Decided to entertain myself with an Ang Lee fix. Bad idea. I left Brokeback Mountain with an anvil hanging inside my chest. Even if I wasn't able to get a lot out of the dialogue, particularly from Heath Ledger's Ennis Del Mar, the film had the emotional weight of a steamroller, running over the heart as Jake Gylenhaal's Jack Twist utters the soon-to-be-classic line, "I don't know how to quit you." Maybe I should try another film, like I Will Always Love You .

Graphic Classics: Rafael Sabatini I don't know if this will be available here, but it's got my name on the cover. (On the lower right, heheheh.) I did 40 pages worth of art for the Captain Blood origin. Gerry Alanguilan's got artwork in here too. I hope the editor likes my work enough to give me stuff to do in the future. Here's another sample page of my work for this anthology. (I had previously posted two pages in December.)

ME : Siguro nama'y na-experience na ninyo ang ganitong sitwasyon na sold-out kaagad ang isang production. Tanghalang Pilipino representative: Actually hindi pa. Ngayon lang. ME: E, di ang ganda ng problema ninyo! TP Rep: Noong una, magandang problema. Pero naging tunay na siyang problema, nakakainis. (laughs) - - - - - - - - - - With that, TP adds two more shows. Feb 26 and Mar 5, Sundays at 8pm. Call Tanghalang Pilipino at 8323661 to reserve. Now na!

Burning My shoulders are burning. Or, to be more anatomically specific, my upper trapezius muscles. That's the area between the neck and the shoulder caps. They've been burning since the middle of Valentine's Day, when my co-workers and I were out-of-town for a photo shoot. No worries--everyone save the photographer was single and had no need to celebrate. The shoot took place at a beach and we spent over four hours under the sun. I didn't expect the shoot to last that long, and I hadn't brought my sunblock. So we got back to Manila all red like boiled lobsters. Hurts like hell now, moreso when I sling my shoulder bag. But the shoot went very well and everyone loved the results, which are scheduled to come out in the April issue of Real Living . I like the idea of going out-of-town every so often, even if it's work-related. The change in environment is invigorating (envigorating?) and allows a new perspective of things, and is highly recommended for those in the...

As of last night, the only showdates with available tickets are March 3 and 4. Tanghalang Pilipino told me that there's a strong possibilty that they'll add more performances during the run, either Thursday or Sunday nights. But that's still up in the air. I'm thankful that many people are dying to see the show, but I'm also saddened that some of my friends have been having a tough time snagging tickets. I have been told to push my weight around to get extra complimentary tickets, but those who know me can attest that that ain't my style. As much as I wish that I could have a "special show" where all my friends can watch for free, that's not really possible at this point. *pout* When TP staged the musical Himala , they had a successful run at the intimate Huseng Batute theater, the same venue of the Zaturnnah musical. With that feather in their cap, they moved the musical to the larger Aurelio Tolentino venue as a bigger production with a bigger bu...