August Round-up

August 2015 was a great month for me because I was able to watch a lot more shows than I usually do in a month. Of course, that leaves me with too few funds for daily needs such as food and skincare, but I wouldn't change a thing!

Therefore, in lieu of an empties post (and with an empty wallet), I've decided to rank the shows I've watched instead.

Listed by overall enjoyment:

1. Hamlet (play) - simple but great acting.
2. La Cage Aux Folles (musical)  - the power of a single star outshining everyone.
3. Singing in the Rain (musical) - not bad, needs polishing.
4. La Cenerentola (concert reading, opera) - great music, dismal direction.

I surprised myself, writing that list: I'd have a very different list if I were looking at how "good" I found each performance compared with others of its ilk. However, this has shown that a great experience in the theater, no matter what type of performance, doesn't just depend on the work of those on stage. Part of this burden rests with management and with the audience itself.



Some things which affect how well I enjoy a show.

1. Accessibility. Some locations are not accessible via public transportation. While this is not a problem for some, traffic is still a problem during some shows, especially the ones occuring at night. Not to mention parking. There is also the problem of dates: some concerts are held during weekdays instead of weekends, and this may affect turn-out. It is definitely harder to access Solaire via public transportation, although parking is plentiful and comes with a free amusement park-like ride.

2. Tardiness. Although this may be a boon to late comers, lateness is a pet peeve of mine. A couple of minutes is one thing but a long delay can signal that either the actors are ill prepared or the audience is not very interested in the show, which reflect badly either way. I've found that in the Philippines, while CCP has the best performance, it's not 100% consistent in timekeeping.

3. Policy Implementation. Do they explicitly, even audibly, state their rules? If so, will they enforce them? It's very helpful to give instructions regarding mobile phones and picture taking. There is also, occasionally, a crying child that must be evaluated. Restaurants are one thing but disrupting a theater performance is very rude. CCP has the strictest policy I've noted.

In this case, though Hamlet suffered from mobiles going off during the show, CCP's standards with regards to time, seat placement and ushering is far above the rest. The rest have had other problems, but neither musicals frustrated me as much as the opera reading.

Hamlet will be showing in different countries around the world while both La Cage Aux Folles and Singing in the Rain are still running at RCBC Tower and Solaire respectively in the Philippines.