‘Prinsipe Bahaghari’, ‘Puting Gunaw’ Puppetry Plays to Run as a Twin Bill this July
Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas will showcase back-to-back puppetry plays in its newest offering, Tabula Rasa: Dalawang Dula sa Kulay ng Buhay, this July.
A fundraising project for the benefit of director-puppeteer Aina Ramolete’s (also a grant recipient of the 2024 Asian Cultural Council) in her pursuit of higher studies in the University of Connecticut, the twin bill production features the return of Prinsipe Bahaghari, the Filipino puppetry adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s “The Little Prince” by Vladimeir Gonzales, and Puting Gunaw, based on National Artist for Theater Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio’s original play “White Holocaust or a Pacific Playwright’s Protest Against the Bomb.”
In Prinsipe Bahaghari, a young prince’s encounters with various extraordinary characters lead to his realizations of what his relationship with Gumamela, the flower, meant to him. The production borrows a Bunraku style puppetry where three puppeteers manipulate one puppet. Prinsipe Bahaghari is suitable for ages five and above.
The artistic and production teams include Vladimeir Gonzales (Playwright), Aina Ramolete (Director, Illustrator & Production Designer), Amihan Bonifacio-Ramolete (Producer & Assistant Director), Steven Tansiongco (Graphics & Video Designer), Ohm David (Set Designer), Arvy Dimaculangan (Music & Sound Designer), Jessamae Gabon (Additional Music Design), Darwin Desoacido (Costume Designer), Gabo Tolentino (Lights Designer), Sigmund Pecho (Additional Shadow Puppet Designer & Publicity Manager), Clariz Caingat (Character Illustrator), Shenn Apilado & Satya Edilo (Technical Director), El-j Lacanilao (Stage Manager), and Janno Castillo (Production Manager).
Puting Gunaw, on the other hand, examines how war and killings have impacted humanity, evident in even the smallest of conversations and round-the-clock daily activities. The lives of the characters are all intertwined and entangled in the reality of a looming war and the struggles they each face at different levels.
The show works with a variety of characters and puppetry within a two-puppeteer performance. In this debut production, audiences will also witness the premiere of the mother-daughter puppeteer tandem of Amihan and Aina Ramolete. Overall, Puting Gunaw features a three-generation Filipino puppetry tradition in Teatrong Mulat: Amelia Lapeñ-Bonifacio (Playwright), Amihan Bonifacio-Ramolete (Puppeteer), and Aina Ramolete (Director and Puppeteer).
The play is suitable for ages 13 and above.
The artistic and production teams include National Artist for Theater Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio (Playwright); Vladimeir Gonzales (Filipino Adaptation writer), Aina Ramolete (Director, Illustrator, Production Designer & Puppeteer), Amihan Bonifacio-Ramolete (Producer & Puppeteer), Alice Gonzales (Dramaturg), JM Cabling (Movement Designer), Sigmund Pecho (Shadow Puppet Designer & Publicity Manager), Steven Tansiongco (Video Designer), Ohm David (Set Designer), Arvy Dimaculangan (Music & Sound Designer), Harvey Sallador (Puppet Designer), Andrei Fabricante (Lights Designer & Technical Director), Satya Edilo (Technical Director), El-j Lacanilao (Stage Manager), and Janno Castillo (Production Manager).
Teatrong Mulat acknowledges the thematic difference between its two plays, thus offering three options for viewership: watching both Prinsipe Bahaghari and Puting Gunaw, watching only Prinsipe Bahaghari, or watching only Puting Gunaw. The plays cater to different age groups, so viewer discretion is advised.
For audiences watching the plays separately, Prinsipe Bahaghari will be at 3:08 PM and 7:08 PM. A 15-minute intermission will follow the Prinsipe Bahaghari curtain call. After the intermission, Puting Gunaw will run at 4:23 PM and 8:23 PM.
Tickets are priced at Php 1,500 when watching both Prinsipe Bahaghari and Puting Gunaw; Php 1000 when watching only Prinsipe Bahaghari; and Php 800 when watching only Puting Gunaw.
Tabula Rasa will run on July 12, 13, 14, at 3:08 PM (July 13 and 14) and 7:08 PM (July 12, 13, and 14), at the Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio Teatro Papet Museo. Tickets are available at https://forms.gle/itQC3AK4zEgrV7ee6.
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