Ang pangalan niya'y ZsaZsa Zaturnnah

See that? I can't resist to take a pic of this sign at the Tanghalang Pilipino's box office booth early this evening when we lined up for ZsaZsa Zaturnnah: Ze Muzical. This is only the second day (and 3rd performance!) and the available tickets left are for the 3rd and 4th of March! The Huseng Batute theater is small and intimate. You can reach out and touch the actors. We actually left the house at around 4:30pm because Close Up's Lovapalooza event (sigh! I'd LOVE to be there! lol! ). Cak was with us-- me, my mom, my uncle and aunt,.. and my grandma. We had to really warn lola (grandma) about certain sensitive 'issues' that the musical has. She was supposed to head back to Palawan last Sunday but decided to stay and watch. We were actually worried of how she would take the play considering its gay themes and adulterated dialogues. Anyway....

The muzical was hilarious!! Talk about last song syndrome! Some songs are still playing repeatedly in my head. The music and lyrics were well written and the beat has a mixture of gospel, rhythm and blues, techno and funk. Kudos to Vince de Jesus for the type of music he has set in! Galing! (Do I smell a cd soundtrack in the making?!?!) The TP Chorus are a talented bunch! Much energy!

The muzical has a running time of 2 hours and 45 minutes by my watch (though I heard, they were really trying to cut it shorter). Tuxqs Rutaquio fills Ada's shoes perfectly. You can really feel Ada's struggle witht his feelings about his identity, his worth, the society and other people (gandang-ganda ako sa kanya!) . Ricci as the sidekick Didi, keeps the audience in stitches with his seamless comic timing. Eula Valdez as Zaturnnah was a pleasant surprise for me. She was able to portray that babaeng-bakla image with much gusto. I also love the details-- from the Diyosa t-shirt of Didi, to the pamalo with matching pako used to ward away the zombies, up to Zaturnnah's malaswa arts!

Scene hilarious highlights for me are:
- where Ada transforms into this sexy, full-bumpered red-haired babe-- Babae na ako! ( I am a woman!) and yes, it is also red-haired! lol
- confrontation of Zaturnnah and Queen Femina Suarestellar Baroux (played by Agot Isidro.. galing! ) -- You samamabits maderpaker siyeeeeeeet!!
- ala matrix-style fight scenes of Zaturnnah and Queen Femina
- Giant frog attack Nakakalokang palakang kokak!
- Ada and Didi 'drooling' over Dodong. Braso pa lang ay ulam na... and oh yeah, Lauren's (Dodong) noodles ARE delicious lol

Tearjerking and heartwarming scenes:
- Zaturnnah and Ada sings a song to her/his zombie father. Paki buksan ninyo ang puso niyo....tanggapin ng buo ang pagkatao ko
- Dodong professes his interest with Ada. Ikaw ang aking superhero.

After the play, lola pulled my brother aside and said that she didn't laugh or find it funny. Oh-oh! We were waiting with baited breath-- "I find it so pathetic" she says. We know how lola can be so ultra sensitive and conservative with sensitive topics, in this case, gay/homosexual issues, but very much to our surprise, she said, "I can feel his struggle to find his place in the society. Hindi niya kasalanan na ganon siya e! (It's not his fault that he's like that). There are temptations everywhere and we are all human. I feel sad because of what the society has made to believing that people like him doesn't fit in. They are ridiculed. I feel bad. But I like the play. Hindi lang ako natatawa. (I just don't find it funny)". Whew... and we thought we will be hearing another one of lola's litanya! Ok lang yun, lola. That's exactly the message that my brother wants to get across! Over-all, I really enjoyed it. Really really enjoyed it! And I plan to watch it again! Wanna come?

.. battlehymn:
"...Ang pangalan niya'y Zsazsa...! ZsaZsa Zaturnnah! Viktoriya! Winner! Tagumpay!..."