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Showing posts from January, 2020

International tour of Matilda The Musical adds one more week

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JANUARY 2020 – Producers of Matilda usher in the new year with exciting news! GWB Entertainment along with GMG Productions & Virtus Live have just announced that they have added one more week to the Manila season of the international tour of MATILDA THE MUSICAL. The multi award-winning show, which is making its way to Manila for the very first time, opens at The Theatre at Solaire on 05 March 2020 and will now be running until 22 March 2020. The stage adaptation of the much loved Roald Dahl classic was originally produced for the stage by the Royal Shakespeare Company. For the shows that are in the final week, the producers have created the Two-Price Special for Tuesdays, Fridays and Sunday Evening: One price across all orchestra seats, and one price across all balcony seats. MATILDA THE MUSICAL is the multi-award winning musical from the Royal Shakespeare Company, inspired by the beloved book by the incomparable Roald Dahl. With book by Dennis Kelly and original songs by ...

Khalil and Elisse Combine Spoken Word Poetry, Heartbreak in iWant's Ampalaya Chronicles

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iWant brings bitter and relatable love stories in its original 'hugot' anthology series "Ampalaya Chronicles," starring Khalil Ramos and Elisse Joson in the pilot episode that tackles one-sided love. The series, which is now streaming on iWant, is based on the best-selling book and stage performances of curated spoken word poems the "Ampalaya Monologues" by Mark Ghosn. The brand has been popular with young audiences for its musings about the pains of love. The pilot episode titled "ADIK" revolves around shy yet romantic poet Carlo (Khalil), who only wishes to get close to his longtime crush Nina (Elisse). He luckily gets his chance when Nina appears on his doorstep, hoping to get him to help her write and perform poems for her talent portion in an upcoming beauty contest. As the two get closer, Carlo can't help but hope that Nina develops feelings for him. However, he painfully realizes that his dream relationship may only se7em beaut...

MDX' William Review: Refreshing, Relevant? Something like that.

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by Dogtor Marlon Nine years after the initial run by the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA), Mediartrix – the multimedia organization of the University of Santo Tomas – stages their own take of the award-winning musical “William” with Mediartrix alumnus Nico Varona at the helm. Even before Hamilton was a thing, “William” was ahead of its time by telling the story of five high school students through rap. The musical revolves around an ensemble of characters who have to deal with their problems at home and at school, eventually understanding why Shakespeare is still relevant until today. Estella (Mary Agustin) is an overachiever in school. Her mother left her at a young age to marry someone else in London, the reason that Estella could not forgive her. Sophia (Clarissa Lumanog) is a part of a family who recently won in the lottery. She is taught by her father to embrace their new lifestyle and create an image, albeit superficial, that would suit their newfound wealth...

The faces of HIV in the Philippines in PETA's 52nd season finale, Under My Skin

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by JC Salud How does HIV or a person living with HIV look like? Is it something that can be seen through the naked eye? How can it be acquired? Until now, a lot of people are uneducated about this condition. Until now, there is a lot of myth that revolves around it. And until now, people living with HIV are living under the shadow and hiding because of the fear of the prejudice created by society. In this country, where most people have a conservative mindset, is it not time to talk about the topic, SEX? Sex is something that is possible to happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. In this generation, everything is getting more accessible even to the young ones. The lack of information and guidance about the possible hazard that it might bring to their health is basically the cause of the spread of HIV in the Philippines. UNSAFE SEX, yes that's the root cause of the problem. Most of the conservative parents don't have the guts to openly discuss such topic. The mindset that se...

Downtown Abbey's Michelle Dockery in new film "The Gentlemen"

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From the highly successful TV series Downton Abbey, Michelle Dockery, known for her unforgettable role as Lady Mary, steps up into a world dominated by men in the gangster caper The Gentlemen. Dockery takes on the shoes of a kingpin’s wife, Rosalind, who is just as tough, even tougher than the guys and who doesn’t back down from anything. Writer-director Guy Ritchie assembles an all-star cast in The Gentlemen where the central protagonist is Mickey (played by Matthew McConaughey) whose attraction to his increasingly upper-crust way of life leads him to seek an exit from his chosen profession as a marijuana kingpin. The Gentlemen also stars Charlie Hunnam, Henry Golding, Michelle Dockery, Jeremy Strong, with Colin Farrell, and Hugh Grant – all under the direction of master filmmaker Guy Ritchie, who returns to the genre and type of characters to which he gave an indelible and unique flavor in films such as Sherlock Holmes, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and Snatch. While ...

Cherry Pie Picache advocates for HIV with PETA's Under My Skin

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QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES – The Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) closes its 52nd Theater Season and welcomes the first quarter of 2020 with Rody Vera’s Under My Skin, a provocative, relevant, and heart-wrenching drama anthology top-billed by multi-awarded actress Cherry Pie Picache. Inspired by real people and events, the play accurately depicts the realities, triumphs, and struggles of people living with HIV, while navigating an important conversation about acceptance and tolerance. The play, which is part of PETA’s creative campaign “Acting on HIV”, aims to re-examine the issue of HIV and AIDS, as the numbers of recorded cases rapidly increase every day. “I’ve always wanted to do a play with PETA, so I am very excited to be finally doing it now,” Cherry Pie shares. “Most of what I’ve been doing lately is getting involved with different advocacies. So when our director and my good friend Melvin Lee told me that Under My Skin is going to be an advocacy play on HI...

All-Star Cast "The Gentlemen" In Philippine Cinemas On January 29

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Ready your wits when “The Gentlemen” starts playing their games on January 29 in PH cinemas – a rollicking action-packed caper, where everyone seems to be friends and fiends battling for the highest seat of power. From writer-director Guy Ritchie comes The Gentlemen is a star-studded, sophisticated action comedy that follows American expat Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey), who has built a highly profitable marijuana empire in London. When word gets out that he’s looking to cash out of the business, a host of colorful, if entirely illegitimate figures scheme, bribe and blackmail their way to try and steal Mickey’s domain out from under him. The Gentlemen’s exciting power cast includes Charlie Hunnam, Henry Golding, Michelle Dockery, Jeremy Strong, with Colin Farrell, and Hugh Grant – all under the direction of master filmmaker Guy Ritchie, who returns to the genre and type of characters to which he gave an indelible and unique flavor in films such as Sherlock Holmes, Lock, Sto...