Quarter IV: Examples :

ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE WITH THE USE OF MEDIA  Himala (Tanghalang Pilipino, 2004)
 Caredivas (PETA, 2011)
INTRODUCTION
 Haring Lear (PETA, 2012)
 Paman (PETA, 2013)
 Ibalong (Tanghalang Pilipino, 2012)
Theater  Noli (Tanghalang Pilipino, 2011)
- is the one major art form that brings together all the  William (Tanghalang Pilipino, 2011)
other art forms—from painting and sculpture, to
installation art, to music, to dance, to literature, even
to computer arts—in a single production. - Meanwhile, other Philippine theater groups are also
staging original and adapted plays and musical
- A story is acted out on stage (or other performance productions, primarily in English.
area) by actors portraying the characters, bringing
them to life and developing the plot through - Best known among these are Repertory
dialogue and actions, and sometimes through song Philippines, Trumpets, and New Voice Company.
and/or dance.
- More recently, Theater Down South has been added
- Contributing to the vivid theater experience are the to their roster. And championing the cause of the
stage sets and props, the lighting, the background more classical form of musical performances is the
music and sound effects, the costumes and Philippine Opera Company.
accessories. In recent decades, computer-generated
2. Repertory Philippines
visual effects and mechanized sets have been
incorporated as well. - In 1967, theater director Zenaida Amador fulfilled
her dream of bringing the best of Broadway and
London’s West End to Filipino audiences. Together
Philippine Theater and Performing Groups with actress Baby Barredo

- The Philippines has a rich and thriving theater - Amador established Repertory Philippines, a
industry that you may be interested to venture into in company that not only staged English-language plays
the future. Productions range from original plays with and musicals year-round but trained actors and
Philippine themes and settings, to renowned theater actresses as well.
classics from past centuries, to contemporary
- Multi-awarded theater actress and singer, Lea
musicals from Broadway or London’s West End.
Salonga, in fact, began her career as a child lead in
Some of the more prominent theater and performing productions of Repertory Philippines. From there, she
groups in the country and their major productions: went on to become an international stage superstar
in the lead role of Kim in Miss Saigon—putting the
Philippines on the world map in terms of theater
1. PETA and Tanghalang Pilipino talent.

- With the American presence in the Philippines for - Also among Repertory’s many notable achievements
the first half of the 20th century, it was inevitable that was the 1993 staging of the international hit musical
many U.S. and European theater forms and scripts Les Miserables in Manila with an all-Filipino cast and
found their way here. Among them were the classics, production team.
such as the plays of William Shakespeare, as well as - In its 2009 season, Repertory added a Filipino classic
the works of great American playwrights. At the same in English to its productions—A Portrait of the Artist
time, local theater groups staged original Philippine as Filipino, by National Artist Nick Joaquin. To date, it
zarzuelas which were plays performed in song, continues to offer a mix of productions ranging from
similar to the European opera. literary classics to contemporary satires, comedies,
- At the forefront of these are the Philippine and musicals.
Educational Theater Association (PETA), founded in Examples:
1967 by Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, and Tanghalang
Pilipino, the resident theater company of the Cultural  A Portrait of Artist as Filipino (2009)
Center of the Philippines, founded in 1987.  Little Women (2010)
 Alice in Wonderland (2013)
- The productions of these groups span the range  The Producers (2013)
from daring new presentations of classical works, to
the spectacle of Philippine myths and legends, to 3. Trumpets
commentaries on current social and political issues.
- In the 1990s, the Philippine theater group Trumpets
also began mounting grand productions of originally-
written musicals with a slant towards good values for  The Red Carp (2009)
children and the whole family.  A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the
Forum (2010)
- Among their plays have been Joseph the Dreamer;
First Name; The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe;
Little Mermaid; Honk; N.O.A.H.; and The Bluebird of
ROLES IN A STAGE PRODUCTION
Happiness.
- Most visible on stage in a theater production are the
- The intention of Trumpets is to provide wholesome
actors and actresses playing their roles.
theater experiences for Filipino youth while also
building up the Philippine theater-going public. - However, behind the scenes is an entire team whose
work begins months in advance of the actual
Examples:
performance.
 The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
- It is they who support the actors and enable them to
(1997)
truly bring the play to life.
 N.O.A.H. (2009)
 The Bluebird of Happiness (2013) - While the members of this team may vary
depending on how complex or simple the production
is.
4. New Voice Company

- Also making its own distinct contribution to the

BASIC ROLES REQUIRED:
Philippine theater scene is New Voice Company,
established in 1994 by Monique Wilson—also a 1. Producer – In a professional stage production, this
Repertory Philippines’ protégée who went on to star is the person who takes the play from a mere
on the international stage. New Voice has earned a concept to an actual finished presentation.
reputation for staging thought-provoking productions
on daring and deep topics. - He or she chooses all the team members and assigns
them their functions, and oversees the casting of the
Examples: actors and actresses for the different roles.
 Aspects of Love (2006) - He or she also decides on major logistical matters
 The Male Voice (2009) like when and where the play will be staged, the
 My Name is Rachel Corrie (2010) production schedule, and in most cases either
finances all the production costs or else sources the
funds needed.
5. Philippine Opera Company
Note: In a school or class play, the role of the
- The Philippine Opera Company (POC) was founded in producer is normally fulfilled by the Drama Club
1999 by a group of dedicated classically-trained moderator, the classroom teacher, or by the school
singers, led by soprano Karla Gutierrez as artistic itself.
directress. The POC seeks to develop performers as
2. Director – The director is the overall artistic
well as audiences for classical music performances,
coordinator of the entire production.
both foreign and Filipino.
- Like a conductor of an orchestra, he or she has a
Examples:
vision of the desired total effect and impact of the
 Harana (2009) performance.
 Master Class (2010)
- With the play’s script serving as a “musical score,”
 The Mikado (2013)
the director ensures that each one in the production
“hits all the right notes” to create a cohesive,
seamless performance that will engage the audience.
6. Theater Down South
- Throughout the play’s rehearsals, the director
- In 2007, Theater Down South was founded, with
instructs and guides the actors as to the delivery of
Philippine theater mainstay Michael Williams as
their lines of dialogue; their positions and
artistic director. The vision of the company is to
movements on stage (called “blocking”); the
widen the reach of stage productions beyond the
thoughts or feelings they are to convey through tone
traditional centers within Metro Manila, and
of voice, facial expression, and gestures.
therefore develop a broader audience base.
- By the time of the actual performance, all these
Examples:
should be second nature to the actors as they portray
 A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2007) their characters on stage. The director also
coordinates closely with the set, lighting, sound, or brightening, a speckled effect like sunlight
costume/makeup designers, and the choreographer through leaves, or flickering lights.
(if the play involves dance) to create the envisioned
total effect. - The lighting designer plans all these and
adds detailed notes on the script for the lighting
3. Playwright crew to follow during rehearsals and the actual
performance.
– For a script intended for stage
performance, the writer of the script is more 6. Costume designer
specifically called a playwright. The initial
– The actors and actresses must look
concept or plot may be original, and then
believable in their roles, and much of this is
developed into a play script. Or it may be based
owed to the costume designer. He or she studies
on an existing story or another play which the
the general setting (time and place) that the play
playwright will then adapt to present in a new
is meant to take place in, as well as each
way.
character in the script.
- The script forms the basis of the entire
production. It contains the exact lines of dialogue - He or she then decides what attire will
that each character will memorize and deliver on not only give the audience a clear sense of the
stage, often with notes on tone of voice, facial setting, but will also express each character’s
expression, and even movement or blocking. personality and distinct qualities.

- It also provides a clear description of the - The costumes may need to be designed
set, props, and lighting to be used in each scene. and sewn to meet these requirements. Or they
In some cases, the director may collaborate with may simply be assembled from available clothes
the playwright on making some script and accessories, with some additional touches
adjustments in the course of the rehearsals to created as needed. For a modern or avant-garde
better achieve the desired effect. play, the actors sometimes wear regular street
clothes with a simple prop, a mask, or headgear
4. Set designer to denote the characters they are playing.
– The concept and creation of the 7. Sound designer
physical stage setup is the task of the set
– Similar to the lighting designer, the
designer. He or she builds the set (or sets) that
sound designer serves a vital role in creating and
will simulate the world that the play’s characters
enhancing the atmosphere of the performance.
are supposed to live in.
- Sound, in this case, includes music both
- The set may be realistic and filled with on stage and as background, which the sound
authentic details; or it may be minimalist, merely designer may need to source to suit the general
suggesting the setting with a few pieces of time and place of the play, as well as particular
furniture or props and a simple backdrop. scenes.
- In either case, the set designer ensures - Also involved are special sound effects
that the set will enable the actors to move about like thunder, birds chirping, rushing water,
easily and naturally to make their roles gunfire, passing cars, approaching footsteps, and
believable, and will truly provide the ambiance the like.
on stage that the director and the playwright - The sound designer works with all these
intend. to support the action and interaction taking
5. Lighting designer place on stage. He or she adds detailed notes to
the script to serve as a guide for the sound crew
– Coordinating closely with the set during rehearsals and the actual performance.
designer is the lighting designer.
8. Production manager
- Lighting is critical in creating the mood
of each scene in the play, highlighting a dramatic – Coordinating all the complex behind-
moment, signalling the entrance of a character, the-scenes details of staging a play is the
focusing attention on a specific spot on stage, or production manager.
even providing the blanket of darkness for set - He or she is tasked with overseeing the
and prop changes. crews for the sets and props, the sound and
- Colored lights or filters may be used, as music, the lighting, and the costumes.
well as special effects such as gradual dimming
 - This includes ensuring that all the and personality, and the time and place of the
needed elements, facilities, and equipment are story.
not only available, but are in good working
- But it may also be far more challenging, such as
order, properly catalogued and labelled, and
transforming the actors into mythical creatures,
safely stored from one rehearsal to the next, up
animals, a different nationality, or futuristic
until the time of the performance.
beings.

9. Technical director
- Thus, the makeup designer works his or
– The technical director shadows the her magic through the wonders of makeup, face
play’s director throughout the entire production and body painting, and hair coloring.
process.
- Other accessories may be employed, like
- From the time the director presents his masks, wigs and hair extensions, headdresses,
or her vision for the play and issues instructions at and even prosthetics to alter certain facial
every rehearsal, the technical director carefully features or body parts.
notes how each actor and every member of the
stage, sound, lighting, and costume crews need
to be coordinated to bring the director’s vision Elements of Art as Applied to an Original
to life—ensuring that every instruction is Performance
properly executed.
 Sound and Music
- By the time of the final technical
rehearsal (sometimes called the dress rehearsal, – incorporating sound recording and editing
since it is performed in full costume and makeup), techniques available using applications for
the director focuses on assessing the total effect desktop or laptop computers, tablets, and
of the performance and how it might still be android phones
improved.
 Gesture, Movement, and Dance
- It is then the technical director who
takes over to closely monitor the individual – incorporating appropriate dance styles and
details, and again ensure that these work techniques learned in Physical Education classes
together seamlessly in the actual performance.
 Costume, Mask, Makeup, and Accessories
10. Choreographer
– incorporating art techniques such as painting,
– In cases where a play involves dance in papier mache, assemblage, simple sculpture and
certain scenes, a choreographer is included in industrial design
the production team.
 Spectacle
- He or she not only plans out all the
dance steps to suit the music, but also rehearses – creating a striking, even awe-inspiring effect on
the actors until they are able to perform the stage through the use of lighting, sound, music,
dance skillfully—while remaining “in character” costumes, dance, and special effects
on stage.
- Should the play happen to involve fight
scenes, the choreographer will likewise program Principles of Art as Applied to an Original
the moves of the opposing sides so these can be Performance
executed not only believably, but safely as well.
11. Makeup designer
 Rhythm, Movement
– As the costume designer deliberates on  Balance
the characters’ main attire, the makeup designer  Emphasis
is brought in to plan the hairstyles and makeup  Harmony, Unity, and Variety
to complement the costumes.  Proportion

- The work of the makeup designer may be as

simple as making the actors look natural for their
respective roles—based on their characters’ age
.