Ibarra C. Mateo
A socio-political play written by Federico Garcia Lorca, two months before he was murdered in June 1936 during the Spanish Civil War, tackling tyranny and oppression in a household, opens tonight the 44th season of Dulaang UP.
Directed by by Alexander Cortez, Lorca’s La Casa de Bernarda Alba was translated from the original Spanish into English by Daisy Lopez (The House of Bernarda Alba). The same play was translated into Filipino by Cortez as Ang Tahanan ni Bernarda Alba.
With themes that may resonate with many Filipinos today, Lorca’s play is peppered with socio-political commentaries on the lives of rural women in an Andalusian village, notably oppressive rules and constricting impositions.
The House of Bernarda Alba / Ang Tahanan ni Bernarda Alba centers on a family of three generations with Bernarda Alba as the head of the household.
As the drama unfolds, the audience will observe how Bernarda treats her mother, daughters, and servants as “mere puppets under her command.” Bernarda’s disposition emphasizes the larger themes of tyranny and oppression found throughout the play.
Also, Bernarda’s dealings with all the people in her household show the intricate relationship between the abused and the abuser.
The play centers on events inside the house of Bernarda Alba, a domineering matriarch who imposes an eight-year mourning period on her household after her second husband’s death. The long mourning period is dictated by her family’s religious traditions.
Bernarda has five daughters in their twenties and thirties, whom she asserts almost total control, forbidding them from entering any romantic relationship over the course of mourning.
This mourning period isolates the family and builds tension within the household as the daughters fight against each other on matter such as marriage, inheritance, and command, reflecting religious hypocrisy and all its trappings.
Veteran actors Frances Makil-Ignacio and Gigi Escalante alternate as Bernarda Alba. Other members of the cast are Stella Cañete Mendoza and Sheryl Ceasico (as Poncia), Rica Nepomuceno and Ronnie Martinez (as Maria Josefa), Liway Gabo and Opaline Santos (as Angustias), Iris Montesclaros and Gel Basa (as Magdelena), Camille Abaya and Mikaela Coruña (as Amelia), Sarina Sasaki (as Martirio), Pauline Maxine Ignacio and Mariella Laurel (as Adela), Jacqui Amper and Lei Ann Quinquilleria (as Servant), and Bea Racoma (as Prudencia).
Joining Cortez in the artistic team are Judy Ick (Dramaturgy), Gino Gonzales (Production Design), Meliton Roxas Jr. (Lights Designer), Jethro Joaquin (Sound), Katz Trangco (Music), JM Cabling (Movement), Jojit Lorenzo (Photography), and Steven Tansiongco (Graphics Designer).
The House of Bernarda Alba / Tahanan ni Bernarda Alba opens Dulaang UP’s 44th Theater Season dubbed as “Daluhong”. It runs from Sept. 6 to 29, 2019 at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, 2F Palma Hall, UP Diliman, Quezon City.
For inquiries, contact Nico Varona (0917 519 8879), send an email at dupmarketing@gmail.com, call the Dulaang UP Office (Tel.: 926- 1349 / 981-
8500 local 24-49).
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