There are wild and crazy things happening onstage and backstage at Repertory Philippines' latest offering, Noises Off.
This could be considered a play-within-a-play since theatergoers will be able to witness the shenanigans, horseplay and steamy stuff that abound while performers mount a fictional play titled "Nothing On."
The latter production depicts various folks stumbling into a house for naughty action, be it tax evasion, common thievery or bedroom fun. Missing items abound, be it documents,
pants, dresses and even sardines. Something fishy is really going on!
But that's not all: there's even more hanky-panky behind the scenes with the actors and actresses as they go about the production.
This is what Noises Off is all about: a play about a play about
playing around.
The story revolves around an ambitious director and his troupe of mediocre actors.
Three absolutely hilarous acts are presented to the audience, showing all sorts of mischief and true funny business and they
all revolve around one single act!
What sort of naughtiness is going down or getting on? Let's get a lowdown on these delicate issues with handy dandy blind items. Intrigues up ahead!
Blind Item #1 - Which backstage badboy is an avid whore-ticul..., I mean, horticulturalist? 'Seed Spreader' keeps requesting for various types of flowers to the point that he gets a prick, I mean, he gets quite prickly when he doesn't receive them.
Could 'Seed Spreader' be the director Lloyd Dallas, played by
Chinggoy Alonso? If one is looking for hints, he states that "...the second act reveals a lot about the whole play, because that's when the commotion, the chaos unfolds."
His advice for the audience: "...don't anticipate anything. Act 2 becomes a big surprise for them and Act 3 would really blow them out of their minds."
What does the last comment mean?
Chinggoy Alonso
Blind Item #2 - Which actress totally immerses herself into her
character to the point that, for good luck, she took the old theatre custom to 'break a leg' to ward off bad mojo very literally? 'Break Out Actress' spent her time hobbling on set, not letting her injury stop the show from fallin on its last legs.
Could 'Break Out Actress' be Dotty Otley, brought to life by Frances Makil Ignacio? She did claim that a challenge for her would be working with an accent, "... my theatre training is just ditch all the accents because you're Filipino. You speak good, clear English to get the story out but this play, it is imperative that you have the accent because it is what it is about, a housekeeper with a British accent na cockneyed, ay naku!"
Could getting the accent just right not enough for her?
Frances Makil Ignacio
Blind Item #3 - Which actress is a married woman on stage but is actually seeing a different leading man in the same play? 'Miss Demeanor' is one of the most level-headed and sensible leading ladies one could ever meet but she has fallen for her not-husband and has apparently already tied the proverbial knot!
Could 'Miss Demeanor' be Belinda Blair, portrayed by Shiela
Valderrama? She did say that the play is "...nothing like I've ever done before. This is my first farce. I do a lot of comedies but it's usually light comedies, romantic comedies, mostly musical... so this is my real hardcore comedy." Hardcore for sure.
Shiela Valderrama
Blind Item #4 - Which suave leading men plays it cool and collected in front of the audience but behind the scenes, he likes to beat out tunes on various furniture? 'Head Banger' literally would cause a commotion on the set by striking the props, with his head or maybe even a handy axe (and we don't mean the muscial kind).
Could 'Head Banger' secretly be Garry Lejeune, played by Lorenz Martinez? Not related to his musical inclinations but what he does find physically challenging would be the aforementioned Act 2, where he has to "... run around, go up and down the stairs, basically just go around the stage..." He mentions 'liking cougars' as well.
Are there wild animals loose on the set?
Lorenz Martinez
Blind Item #5 - Which respected actor is a substance abuser, known to sniff out any hint of licquor on the stage and disappear without a trace? 'Whiskey Whiskers' is known to get so drunk that his condition causes folks in the periphery to fall under his intoxicated aura, to the point that they see double, even triple!
Could 'Whiskey Whiskpers' be Selsdon Mowbray, portrayed by Paul Holme?
He admits, "I wish I was in more of it [the play], it's not a very large role... The first act is the one that I'm the most involved in." But he is most proud of his "... dialogue, which comes out more in the first act." Could his lack of presence be attributed to a drunken binge?
Paul Holme
Blind Item # 6 - Which actor plays a role in a role in a role in a
role by secretly adding hints of a secret identity in his, well, role? 'Mister FourPlay' is no stranger to wearing sheets or exposing his underwear for all to see, be it over or under his pants. It simple shows his versatility as man of scene-steeling qualities.
Could 'Mister FourPlay' be Frederick Fellowes, brought to life by Gerard Sison? He did say he was proudest of the fact that "...after a 21 year of absence from stage, I was told my performance looks natural and effortless from the whiney, fragile Freddy to the bombastic ham acting of Philip, both with convincing British accents, and add to that the short comedic role of the Sheik." Three roles in, what could the fourth possible be?
Gerard Sison
Assistant Director Robbie Guevara has this testimonial to say about Noises Off: "A lot of things that are written about in the show happen in real life... There are intrigues backstage. There are a lot of romances backstage, a lot of those are real. It's not uncommon to have affairs and all that. But here it's just exaggerated and they make light of it.
But it's true, not just in the Philippines but obviously abroad
as well.
Intrigued yet? If you want to watch this play described as "probably one of the funniest farces ever written..." , be sure to watch the last performances of Noises Off this April 26-27, 2014 at Onstage, Greenbelt One, Makati City.
You won't be disappointed.
To purchase tickets, call Ticketworld at Tel. No. 891-9999 or visit Ticketworld Online.
For more information, here is their website:
http://repertoryphilippines.com/shows/noises-off/