Jake is not yet ready to be a dad

Jake Cuenca

Unlike the man he portrays in his latest project, Duncan Macmillan’s play “Lungs,” actor Jake Cuenca is not yet that ready to take the big plunge—and raise his own family.

He admitted that he understood his character’s anxieties and relationship woes (opposite costar Sab Jose), but when it came to fatherhood, he was simply on the fence.

“I’m not ready to get married yet, let alone have children,” he admitted. “I’m definitely the right age, and it has entered my mind. But it’s just that I’m doing a million things right now, and I’m enjoying every single one of them.”

The chaotic state of the world doesn’t help, either.

Crazy world

“It’s crazy,” he exclaimed. “It’s not just the state of the environment. It’s also the politics, the economy… everything is getting a little insane. And here in the Philippines, everything is getting a lot more expensive at the moment.”

Having a kid, he conceded, would be a game-changer for him, in more ways than one. “When you become a father, you have to be ready to make sacrifices and adjustments, in order for you to provide for your children and for them to survive. Right now, I’m not there yet, though.”

If ever the right time comes, he would teach his future children to take care of the environment, pursue the arts, and strive to be decent human beings—the same concerns tackled in the two-character play.

Raising good people

“I would like my kids to be more aware of environmental issues than I am,” he remarked. “When we were in school, these topics were raised, but they weren’t emphasized enough.”

With the chilling effects of climate change that we see everywhere, he said, “if we don’t mend our ways, then it will be our kids and their kids who will suffer in the end.”

Introducing his children to the arts—and the performing arts, in particular—would be his priority, as well. “But more than anything, I want to raise good people. I think that’s the most important [responsibility of a parent].”

Stage debut

This theater newbie recognizes just how vital it is for an individual to keep pushing oneself—for personal growth and fulfillment.

After a string of indie movies and studying acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York, Jake plunges head first into his stage debut.

“One of the reasons I am doing this is because I haven’t felt nervous in a very long time,” he explained. “I’ve been acting for 16 years… and now I’ve realized that the key to good acting is being relaxed. To be like water, and just flow with everything.”

No safety net

In theater, however, “there’s no safety net,” he acknowledged. “It’s like walking on a tightrope. You only have one go at it and, if you make a mistake, everything will crumble.”

That prospect, he admitted, makes him sweat bullets. “But that’s also the exciting part. It reminds me of my earlier years in the industry. It’s about loving the craft at its purest. Not just loving a scene, but the whole performance.”

Other plans

After wrapping up work on the series “The Blood Sisters,” there’s a new show (“Los Bastardos”) in the offing, along with three movies, including Mikhail Red’s “Eerie,” which topbills Charo Santos-Concio and Bea Alonzo.

As for his other future plans?

“Right now, I’m just living in the now. I just need to do all this really well. Everything I’m being given now is my choice. No one forced this upon me. I want to keep busy, because I feel these opportunities are golden. In the end, I just want to be able to look back and say ‘Wow, 2018 was that year I did it all!’”

Mounted by The Sandbox Collective and 9Works Theatrical and directed by Andrei Pamintuan, “Lungs” will go onstage at Power Mac Center Spotlight, Circuit Makati, from Sept. 22 to Oct. 7.

For tickets, call 8919999.