“WILL they destroy their friendship?” nagged at the theatre patrons’ minds as Nap and Ramon’s friendly conversation over bottles of beer quickly nosedived into the pit of betrayal and disappointment in the Cebuano adaptation of U. Eliserio’s short play “Kwentong Beerhouse” last Oct. 17 to 20 at the Pineapple Lab in Makati City.
Charlene Virlouvet, managing director of 2TinCans Theatre Company, directed the 10-minute adaptation, one of eight performances in the fifth run of “Shorts and Briefs,” an annual independently produced festival of short plays featuring new and emerging stage actors and directors.
Eliserio’s play was Virlouvet’s debut in the world of directing and her first-ever theatre project in Manila. Herself a rising stage actress, Virlouvet has earned a name for herself in Cebu’s theatre scene for the past 15 years through her appearances in such productions as “Agnes of God,” “Emotional Creature,” and the yearly “The Vagina Monologues.”
“Kwentong Beerhouse” starred Cebuano stage actors Dion Cecilio, Rennel Shane Ayong, Vince Lopez, and Shiella Pestaño-Gemperoa. Like Virlouvet, all four are also 2TinCans members. Cecilio appeared in the Cebuano dark comedy film “Patay Na Si Hesus,” and performed in Cebuano musical productions like “Gugmang Giatay” and “Scharon Mani.” A nurse by profession, Ayong, started his performing arts career as a dance teacher and choreographer whose passion brought him to national and international dance competitions. Lopez is a member of several dancing and singing groups in Cebu. He recently performed in the Cebuano musical “Scharon Mani” produced by 2TinCans. Pestaño-Gemperoa has years of theater experience under her belt. As Lola Lucy in “Gugmang Giatay,” she became one of Cebuano theater’s fan favorites.
Besides “Kwentong Beerhouse,” this year’s round of “Shorts and Briefs” also featured the following works: Alex Broun’s “Afterwards” (directed by Joshua Tayco); Dudz Terana’s “Dear God” (directed by Nikki Corrales); Brandon M. Crose’s “Going Viral” (directed by Antonio Luis Mercado); Noah del Rosario’s “I Will Not Die Tonight” (directed by James Ferrer); Anne Mimille Guzman’s “Sa Susunod Na Estasyon” (directed by Robert Joshua San Luis); Russell Bell’s “Tagged” (directed by Noah del Rosario); and John MacKay’s “The Song” (directed Aldo Vencilao). (PR)