‘Spring Awakening’ musical ibubulgar ang sikreto, hamon ng pagiging teenager

PHOTO: Courtesy of Sean Jimenez

TEEN pregnancy, mental health, identity crisis, at pang-aabuso.

Ilan lamang ito sa mga tatalakayin sa "Spring Awakening," ang Tony-winning musical na muling ibabandera ng The Sandbox Collective para sa kanilang ika-12 taon.

Sa press conference na dinaluhan ng BANDERA, binigyang-diin ng cast at creatives na higit pa sa isang coming-of-age story ang nasabing show.

Isa itong babala at paalala, lalo na sa mga magulang kung ano ang maaaring mangyari kapag nananatiling tahimik ang mga nakatatanda, habang naghahanap ng sagot ang kabataan.

"It's set in late 1800s Germany about teenagers discovering their sexuality, and it's set to rock music," paglalarawan ni Nacho Tambunting sa musical.

Para naman kay Alex Diaz, malinaw ang sentro ng palabas: "This musical is about the perils of puberty," isang yugto ng buhay na puno ng kalituhan, takot, at tanong na madalas ay walang malinaw na sagot.

Baka Bet Mo: 'Spring Awakening' ibinandera na ang buong cast ng musical

<iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F1414286570145270%2F&show_text=false&width=267&t=0" width="267" height="476" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe>

Isa sa pinakamabigat na temang tinatalakay ng musical ay ang kakulangan ng bukas na komunikasyon sa loob ng pamilya. 

Ayon kay Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, mas mahalaga ang pagiging tapat ng mga magulang kaysa pananakot o pag-iwas sa mahihirap na tanong.

"If you don't explain or have an open relationship or communication with the children, they will seek the answers elsewhere, which can be very damaging. If they get the wrong information, and so forth, as we all know the consequences of that," paliwanag ni Menchu.

Giit pa niya, "So I think it is really open communication and be very honest with your children if you want them to get the correct information and take precautions from it."

Dagdag ni Ana Abad Santos, mahalaga ang kaalaman upang makagawa ng tamang desisyon ang kabataan para sa sarili nilang katawan. 

"Knowledge is power. It's our body, so we should know how to take care of it," sey niya.

Ibinahagi rin ni Audie Gemora ang kanyang karanasan sa pagiging ama, mula sa pagiging "cool parent" hanggang sa moment na medyo nagulat siya sa mga usapan tungkol sa sex at katawan. 

Para sa kanya, malinaw na ipinapakita ng musical kung gaano kahirap minsan sa adults ang mag-explain tungkol sa sex, isang challenge na umiiral noon at hanggang ngayon.

Ayon naman sa Artistic Director of The Sandbox Collective na si Sab Jose-Gregorio, mahalaga ang "Spring Awakening" bilang palabas na maaaring panoorin ng magulang at anak. 

"Innocence does not mean ignorance," wika niya. 

Dagdag niya, "It was written as a warning to parents. This is what can happen if you don't have open discussions with your children. This is what can happen when you repress them, suppress them, when you try and limit the knowledge they have."

Panawagan pa niya, "I want us to educate the future generations and learn from the mistakes of the past."

<iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fbanderaphl%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0z3o6RBAP2AmBycAbgoyiSbPGWEKJwAYHRag16N59pHJm6XXEydC6SBwTP4y7qVZNl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="690" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe>

Ipinaliwanag ng musical director na si Andrei Nikolai Pamintuan na hindi nalalayo sa reyalidad ng Pilipinas ang kwento ng musical. 

"I think there's a reason why we're staging 'Spring Awakening 'today, and why it resonates with so many people," bungad niya sa presscon.

Chika pa ng direktor, "The themes tackled in the show in 1890s Germany—sexuality, identity, pre-marital sex, corporal punishment in schools, miseducation, and suicide—are still, unfortunately, happening today. These topics affect teenagers now in very real ways. For example, many young women in the Philippines don't even know they're pregnant until they give birth. This show allows parents to reflect on how they discipline and communicate with their children, and opens up conversations among youth about how to navigate the challenges of puberty and adolescence."

Hirit pa ni Omar Uddin, ang "Spring Awakening" ay maaaring magsilbing eye-opener sa mga magulang at magbigay-lakas sa boses ng kabataan, bago pa mauwi sa mas malulubhang trahedya ang kanilang pinagdaraanan.

Hindi rin itinago ng cast ang emosyonal na bigat ng palabas. 

Tulad nina Nic Chien at Omar, na parehong gumanap bilang Moritz, umaming hamon ang paghihiwalay ng sarili sa karakter na dumaraan sa madilim at trahedyang kwento.

"It's so real, and it's so sad. It is so deeply tragic. But it's also very unfortunately accurate to what a lot of young people go through," pagbubunyag ni Nic. 

Para naman kay Angia Laurel, may mga eksenang maaaring maging triggering, kaya mahalaga ang pag-aalaga sa sarili pagkatapos ng bawat rehearsal at pagtatanghal.

"It does make me sad to think that this used to happen to a lot of kids and teens where their parents didn't teach us what to do and what to think and how to feel about those things," sambit niya.

Aniya pa, "But then, you know, that's what the story is meant to show everyone…that you know, there's something to learn from this story to improve and to grow as a person, to take care of the future generations."

Ang powerhouse cast ng musical ay pinangungunahan ni Menchu at Ana bilang Adult Woman, at Audie bilang Adult Man.

Kasama rin sina Nacho at Alex (Melchior), Nic at Omar (Moritz), at Sheena Belarmino (Wendla), kasama ang iba pang established at emerging theater artists.

Nasa likod ng production ang mga beterano sa industriya tulad nina Ejay Yatco (musical director), Nunoy Van Den Burgh (choreography), Missy Maramara (intimacy direction), at Wika Nadera (set design).

Ang "Spring Awakening" ang kauna-unahang palabas sa The Black Box at The Proscenium Theater sa Rockwell, Makati, at aarangkada mula February 13 hanggang March 22.

The post 'Spring Awakening' musical ibubulgar ang sikreto, hamon ng pagiging teenager appeared first on Bandera.