All Gore

A kinda delayed Halloween post!

OMG! I want these porcelain dolls! Cute. Delicious. :))

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This is sick! Genius! Rawr.

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These works are by British sculptor Jessica Harrison. \m/

Thoughts on 'A Little Night Music'

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A Little Night Music tells the story of mismatched lovers and their amusing weekend in a country home. With music and lyrics by master Stephen Sondheim, it is regarded a Broadway classic and Atlantis Productions finally brings it to Manila! You must know by now that I am a huge Sondheim fan! I love his music and intricate lyrics and rhymes. His works transcend people's notions of musicals. His works are not just enjoyable, but actually also rich and profound. A Little Night Music is one of my favorite Sondheim works.

I watched this two times for free, one when I won the Twitter raffle and the other one when my sister won another Twitter raffle. I wouldn't call this a review, more on my thoughts and reactions on the show, based on the two performances that I've seen. The story in a nutshell: Fredrik  marries his second wife, the virgin Anne but Fredrik's attraction to Desiree returns when he sees her in the theatre. But Desiree is also Count Carl-Magnus' mistress. Plus, Fredrik's son Henrik is in love with his stepmother! My, my. Isn't is bliss!

Nonie Buencamino, as the Fredrik Egerman, had some trouble with his first song 'Soon', some of his lyrics becoming muddled and murmured. He could've practiced more how to throw lyrics in such a speed. But as the show progressed, he was pitch-perfect, acting and singing-wise. Cris Villonco as the perky and virginal Anne stole the show in every scene she's in. I was blown away by her almost-natural accent and she hit all her high notes well, especially in 'Soon'. She was my favorite character in this production. Felix Rivera played the unnoticed and confused Henrik. This was a different role for Felix, his first time to take on a Sondheim role. And he doesn't dissapoint. this was one of his finest perfomances. I was a bit worried because he avoided the Cheyenne Jackson route in Xanadu. But he did it this time. I love his 'Later' and yes, he hit the high note!

Jake Macapagal, as Count Carl-Magnus, was alright. His notes were fine but I think he could have added more to his role. A little more macho, perhaps? Since his role is an arrogant and valiant army man, we should get an arrogant and valiant army man. Jenny Jamora was delicious as the cold and bitter Charlotte. Her knack for delivering punchlines was brilliant. Jay Glorioso was wonderful as Madame Armfeldt, funny and endearing at the same time. Although I wonder why they didn't cast an actual 70-year old to play the part. But at least, they got away with it. Thank God Crystal Baranda-Paras improved! The first time I watched the show, she struggled with her lines. There are times that she was just standing in the background in some scenes so she could have avoided that.

The quintet, composed of Teenee Chan, Agnes Barredo-Fenoli, Glen Llanes, Raul Montesa and Jenny Nuyda, was exceptional. Their voices blended well and they did not disappoint. The women were brilliant. However, Glen Llanes was kind of distracting since his voice was too soft, I felt like a woman was singing! On the other hand, Raul Montesa's baritone was soothing and I enjoyed his solo parts.

And Dawn Zulueta. I know she can act but my god, can she sing! Although she had one solo and some lines in a couple of songs, she made the most of it. She song-speak in 'The Glamorous Life' was commendable and her comedic timing in 'You Must Meet My Wife' was superb. Of course, the play was leading to the immortal 'Send in the Clowns' and yes, she brought down the house. Her rendition was emotionally rich and layered, although I feel she should have lessened the 'almost-crying' effect. For me, I believe that 'Send in the Clowns' is a bitter song, one sung with emotions of regret and surrender. But anyway, she brought a dimension to the song, although as I pointed out, one doesn't need to cry just so a sad song can come through. Dawn's flirtatious Desiree was enjoyable and most of the time, hilarious. I think she should do more theater!

I do have some problems with the show. First problem: I didn't quite like the stage direction and choreography in 'A Weekend in the Country'. It's my favorite song from the musical ( I can even sing the whole thing, all the parts! Bwahaha! ) and I was looking forward to finally seeing it performed live. The cast and ensemble were excellent but I felt like I need to close my eyes during the second half of the song. The cheesy pointing here and there, the messy stage movements of the actors. And they didn't do the 'invitation-passing' choreography!

Second problem: Am I the only one who didn't like Alys Serdenia's 'The Miller's Son'? She was brilliant and hilarious in her other scenes, but her solo was a mess, I'm sorry to say. She needs to improve on her diction because the sense of the song is lost when the lyrics are incomprehensible. Her singing style was too diva for me, with distracting riffing and kulots. I'm not a music major so I don't know the terms and stuff but the performance was just below par.

But thankfully the pluses outweighed the minuses. What a gift for Mr. Sondheim's birthday!

Have you seen this man?

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Report immediately! This buck-teethed criminal needs to be destroyed! HAHA!

I think I need to rewatch The Half-Blood Prince coz I barely remember it! Swear, I’m having trouble recalling scenes from the movie! Or maybe I haven’t watched it? But we never miss watching HP. Argh. I’m too young to have Alzheimer’s! Haha Basta, I need to rewatch it before the 19th!