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Thursday, October 30, 2003
Magsaysay: Helen of Troy
By Jo Magsaysay
Whatever
Still incapacitated (malingering?), I welcome a blurb from Mary Immaculate Learning Center, Inc. (Milc, Inc.) through my young friend, Catherine Cusi who is a-bubble about a Japanese boy who plays Greek (wow!) and a Helen of Troy, a Eurasian whose dimples are so deep a thousand ships could be launched therein! Let’s have Cathy tell us:
Choosing a very celebrated topic as a theatrical piece has its own pitfalls, more so if the subject focused on is something that every intelligent person has knowledge of. Take the case of Milc, Inc. a low-profile but academically advanced institution, which dared to put up Helen of Troy as its annual play presentation.
The first problem the school had to face was the absence of dramatic material on the subject for no matter how the well-heeled Parents’ Circle members pulled local and foreign resources, no such theatrical recount on the topic could be had. It was then unanimously decided that the services of Al Evangelio would be solicited, he, being a consistent prizewinner in prestigious playwriting competitions here and abroad. But upon consultation, the committee was aghast at the seeming price that they had to pay which was justified by the multi-awarded playwright as a most difficult subject matter to reconstruct for stage purposes because of the 10-year time frame of the Trojan War sparked by the abduction of Helen and intervened in by the gods in Olympus, with subplots which are integral to the development of the storyline. It took a while for the parents to come to terms with the initial six-figure expense, but the affluent community individually pitched-in to subsidize the literary commission.
The resulting thematic dissertation was beyond their expectation for it ingeniously wove into the core of the matter important human and “immortal” conflicts that would make the presentation educational, interesting, spontaneous, artistic and value laden.
Filling in the casting demands, especially the major roles, was another problem that had to be tackled, for the students’ physical as well as intellectual assets had to be considered. The part of Helen, luckily, was not difficult to assign for a Eurasian teener who had been a consistent honor pupil fitted the bill perfectly.
Thus, Cheyenne Callahan assumed the most coveted part of the woman, Helen, whose face could launch a thousand ships. The eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Keith Callahan, a retired American military officer, Cheyenne and sister Charlene, who is also in the play as the goddess of love, Aphrodite, have been with Milc, Inc. since prep. She has excelled in both academic and extra curricular activities, reaping second honors in her elementary graduation.
Kasuya Suzuki, son of Jessica Suzuki will play the role of Achilles, the mighty Greek Warrior who met his doom in the hands of Paris who shot an arrow into his heel, the only vulnerable spot in his invincible body.
As a major character in the play, Kasuya had to undergo intensive training under the tutelage of 16-year-old Shana Dagny Siap, the youngest assistant director to come from the Cebuano legitimate stage. The stiff regimen of voice and acting experimentation he takes to with zest, uncomplaining even if a line has to be repeated over a hundred times to get the desired result. Typical attitude for this young man who has been a consistent honor student in Milc, Inc. and in Jonai High School in Shizuoka city, Japan, where he studied before.
Helen of Troy is a theatrical breakthrough in the local stage scenario that boasts of more than 300 performers who would be breathing life into the various Trojan and Greek human characters and immortals involved in the 10-year battle provoked by the abduction of Helen, the most beautiful girl in the world from husband Menelaus, by the Trojan Prince Paris.
Evangelio disclosed that this will not only be an artistically entertaining stage exercise but educational as well, considering that this Greek mythological drama served as inspiration for a legion of literary pieces that evolved through the years and which are enjoyed all over the world.
How the respected prizewinning playwright compressed the 10-year Trojan War, complete with the immortals’ interference and the integral subplots into a two-hour stage endeavor is also another angle that warrants viewing.
Helen of Troy will be unveiled at the SM Cinema 1 stage on Jan. 23 and 24, 2004 with famed visual artist Mart Vidal designing the set and costumes.
(October 30, 2003 issue)
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