Tales of loss and love

It was a Sunday afternoon, and I had planned a mommy-daughter day for Nicole and myself.

I took her to her very first play and it was Red Turnip Theater’s production of “33 Variations,” written by Moisés Kaufman and directed by Jenny Jamora.

This was my daughter’s very first straight play. Rem Zamora, one of the Turnips, said I could bring her. So I did.

We sat in the front row, and noticed that the large window panes, instead of a view to the outside, were a few of Ludwig van Beethoven’s 33 Variations on Anton Diabelli’s waltz (set design was by Ed Lacson Jr. and lights were by John Batalla).

This waltz is described in the play as “mediocre” and “pedestrian,” making the character of musicologist Katherine Brandt (played by Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino) wonder why Beethoven (Teroy Guzman) was so obsessed with it.

Is it so he can improve upon it, turning a grain of sand into something spectacular? His obsession then fuels her own, and it is heartbreaking to watch their parallel lives in the face of physical loss—he is slowly losing his hearing and she, a victim of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, which launched a million ice-bucket challenges), is slowly losing her mobility and ability to communicate.

Beethoven and Katherine are the suns orbited by their respective satellites. In Beethoven’s, there is his friend and caretaker Anton Schindler (Rem Zamora) and the composer of the original waltz Anton Diabelli (Paolo O’Hara). In Katherine’s, there is her daughter Clara (Ina Fabregas), struggling to find a place in her mother’s life; the nurse Mike (Franco Chan), who becomes Clara’s boyfriend; and the German music librarian Gertie (Roselyn Perez) who becomes Katherine’s friend and fellow caretaker.

There is one person who traverses both worlds, the Pianist (Ejay Yatco).

The onstage set is very simple: a couple of platforms, a couple of desks and a grand piano. But once we get deeper into the play, the windows with the variations light up. That same variation is then played on the piano, which turns each scene into an immersive experience, largely in part because of how close the audience is to the actors and the set.

My daughter, very quietly, starts to ask questions during the play: “Why is her hand shaking?” “Is that Beethoven? What’s happening to his ears?” “Why is his head on the piano?” “Why is she breathing like that?” “Is she going to die?”

I try my best to give a brief answer, with the “we’ll do research and listen to the music once we get home” disclaimer. To her credit, she remains in rapt attention for the entire play, except when Ina and Franco start kissing. She buries her face in my sleeve. “Too much kissing, Mom.”

The play is beautifully cast with a mix of veterans and newcomers.

Cathartic

I first met Shamaine when she was a guest in my old TV show “Love, Lea,” where she performed a monologue. But I first watched her in a production of “Oedipus Rex” (she played Jocasta), then later in “Atang.”

Her portrayal of Katherine, with all the fire that refuses to be extinguished despite the disease ravaging her body, is not just intelligent and focused, but at times, emotionally raw.

Perhaps she finds in this play catharsis and recovery after the passing of her daughter Julia, finding solace in lines of dialogue about Katherine’s love for Clara.

I shed tears along with her, for both the character and the actor.

Teroy is a firebrand as Beethoven, showing the kind of temper that one seems to find only in the masters. Beethoven, later in life, deteriorated. The great composer took to public drunkenness, waking up in a pool of his own urine.

But, in the play, we see Beethoven’s loss as it is happening and we see the glorious creation of his final mass, through his eyes, his body and Ejay’s playing.

It is a tour-de-force performance that I wish would be recorded, if only so I could relive it as many times as I want.

Ejay is not just the Pianist, but an integral part of the play, delivering a physical and musical performance so seamlessly woven into everything else. He matches the actors’ intensity, ebbing and flowing with how each scene plays out. Although at times a solitary figure in the back, he is riveting to watch.

Roselyn starts off as stoic, but delivers what are probably the funniest moments of the play, referencing what Katherine might need to feel “healthy.” Stifling a laugh during this scene is next to impossible (I did not even try). She unveils a huge heart as her friendship with Katherine grows.

Rem as Mr. Schindler and Paolo as Diabelli find themselves in duels unexpectedly spicy that they are just such a pleasure to watch. (The period costumes by Raven Ong are also, so spot-on.)

Perhaps the most wonderful surprise comes from the newbies Ina and Franco. Reading their bios in the program reveals that “33 Variations” is their first straight play. Yes, they are raw and, yes, they are new, but both have a beautiful presence and chemistry on stage and great comic timing.

For their first foray into straight plays, this baptism of fire serves them both very well. I look forward to what the future may bring.

The play is so masterfully directed it is very difficult to believe that this is Jenny’s directorial debut. In her hands, “33 Variations” is finely crafted, every moment mined. Perhaps she was inspired by Beethoven’s own discovery of the 33 variations found in a 50-second piece, which Katherine eventually realizes.

It is not about turning a grain of sand into a masterpiece, but mining life for what is inherently masterful within it. In Jenny’s own words, “It is a story … of how the greatest losses can be transformed into the greatest achievements of Love, the highest ideal of Man.”

Congratulations, Turnips, you did it again!

“33 Variations” plays for one more weekend at Whitespace.

Shameless plug

On Aug. 26, I shall be doing one last concert before heading to New York for “Allegiance” at the Marriott Grand Ballroom. Titled “Ang Soap Opera ng Buhay Ko (The Concert: Voice of Healing),” the show is for the benefit of the UP College of Medicine. It brings together many of the music industry’s top names such as Ryan Cayabyab, Jed Madela, Vice Ganda, Mark Bautista, Cris Villonco, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, Bituin Escalante, Pinky Marquez, Franco Laurel, The Tux, Caisa Borromeo, Baihana and Catherine Fisher, plus an 80-strong chorus composed of The Mass Appeal, Ateneo Chamber Singers and UP Medicine Choir.

For ticket and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Dr. Melfred Hernandez, concert overall chair, at 0917-8152029; business committee chair Dr. Karin Estepa at 0922-8253146, or Kareen Tapia at 0923-8568043, UPMAF at 5264255.

 

E-mail upmaf.secretariat@gmail.com.