Parlaying ‘Kundiman’ nostalgia to SocMed power

These theater stalwarts’ ‘belief in the transformative power of the Kundiman art song’ is something we can all share, so that we can all Sing, Remember, and Resist!

Billed as “a new way of looking at protest” is UP Playwrights Theatre’s 26th season ender, The Kundiman Party, a play with music by Floy Quintos and directed by Dexter M. Santos,

Indeed, beyond the delightful novelty of concept, rollicking situations and snappy dialogue that crackles with humor, a sober perspective is evident. And this tensile counterpointing between quotidian gravity and the levity inherent in burgis affectations is what makes for engaging, triumphant theater. 

Trendy SocMed parlays nostalgia for kundiman into an effective expression of political resistance. Layers of conflicting truths are kneaded fitfully, as a curiously palatable if problematic mash-up. On one hand, jocose snippets faithfully showcase the familiar personalities of Manila tita-hood, replete with bawdy exultations and self-deprecation. But a sinister bully force raises questions on their depth of commitment.

A retired classical singer, Maestra Adela Dolores, is convinced by tech-savvy activist Bobby to join the cause by turning her own quaint sense of nationalism into a viral sensation. Its success carries dangerous consequences, subjecting their minority corps of dissenters to painful individual choices. 

Someone asks: “How long before we stop trying to be brave?” It seems to be just one of the simple questions that confront them. But it could have been a factor in the disquieting decision that “Rebel Bobby” makes, after his long-lost father, a powerful senator, craftily articulates what dissenters can expect to face.

The posivitists in the audience (as against the “negatrons”), shocked as we may have been by Bobby’s apparent turn-around, can still cling to the nobler hope. Did Bobby take his father’s bait, or did he raise the ante as was also suggested, by running off to the hills where “the real war” is fought? On a whimsy, we could also consider the open-ended choice as one deliberately made ambivalent, as such stuff that allows for a sequel.

But either it’s a false note or yet another foreshadowing: the cougar’s kiss that Bobby responds to without repulsion, intimating that he’s far from a moral force himself.  

In his playwright’s notes, Quintos writes:

“Now, whether the play’s Bobby chooses to ‘fight the real war,’ or whether he crosses over to the ‘dark side,’ I leave to the actor to choose and to you, the audience to decide.

“What is important is that Bobby makes a crucial choice. That choice is what empowers Maestra and her circle to go on. They do, with their Burgis sensibilities tempered by a renewed belief in their cause. Their desire for change is now self-propelled. They know theirs is an eccentric form of protest, a novelty. But they own it nobly. It may be small effort, but it is their duty to Sing, Remember, and Resist.”

Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino leads a powerhouse cast in a memorable production.

There. The open-endedness stays as a delimited option, since noble ownership of even an apparently futile crusade is what matters. There goes the sequel, alas — since The Kundiman Party is so rewarding a theater experience that one would wish for infinite takes if not take-aways of authentic recognition: of self, us, echo-chamber families and tribes, a country so miserably polarized between one-dimensional bullyboys and only incrementally expanding voices of conscience.

As only proper with a creative effort that testifies as contemporary history, an EJK occurs if on the potent sidelines, and the titas often decry their being tagged as “dilawan.” The “Dutards” mentioned in passing might not find it as enjoyable as a “woke” audience would, from matrons to millennials. 

A laugh-a-minute is provoked by savvy lines: “Jologs kung jologs, pero effective!” “Girl, galingan mo!” And when Maestra is told of a hundred thousand views that initially affirm her online popularity as “a living heroine on our side,” and that she’s sure to atttact even more followers, her naïve reply isn’t quite deadpan: “Follow me where?”

In his notes, Quintos also writes on the burgis he admits to be part of, and that are best represented by the three matrons (our version of charming witches stirring up a cauldron):

“… I am also aware, and very proud of our capacity for outrage and indignation, our creativity and our ability to buckle down and get to work when a leader or a cause captures our flighty imaginations. The Titas, Adela’s loyal “matatandang kerengkeng,” personify these flaws and strengths: Helen’s compassion and her fear, Mitch’s political and social savvy, Mayen’s fierce loyalty and sense of duty. These are all qualities I see and have come to love in my own circle of friends and titas.”

Much credit should be given Director Santos in his fifth collaboration with Quintos. I also enjoyed their Angry Christ last year, but this latest effort tops that in all aspects, no doubt also due to the powerhouse cast that rose entirely to the occasion. 

Take a bow, Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino (once again, exceedingly formidable as Maestra Adela), Kalil Almonte, Frances Makil-Ignacio, Stella Cañete-Mendoza, Missy Maramara, Jenny Jamora, Arya Herrera, Teetin Villanueva, Teroy Guzman, Rica Nepomuceno, Melisa Camba and Farley Asuncion. (Missy Maramara played Mitch when I watched the play, and I must say that she’s certainly come a long way from over a decade ago at the Ateneo Arts department when she was still practicing as a junior kikay kerengkeng.)

Credit must also go to Monino Duque (lighting design), Mitoy Sta. Ana (production design), Krina Cayabyab (musical direction), Ryan Cayabyab who lent his piano arrangements, and everyone else involved in this memorable production.

These theater stalwarts’ “belief in the transformative power of the Kundiman art song” is something we can all share, so that we can all Sing, Remember, and Resist!

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Remaining playdates are tomorrow till Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 29 at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, 2nd Floor Palma Hall, UP Diliman.