Last Week of the Cats Musical Live in Manila (August 17-22)

Before deciding to watch the Cats Musical in Manila run and after knowing how much the tickets went for (PHP7,210/PHP6,180 for seats closest to the stage, PHP5,150/4,635 for the next best seats, etc. For ticket prices and show schedules, visit ticketworld. They stage two shows, one each for the afternoon and night time Saturday and Sunday), several other considerations got me anxious. Having seen and written about several staged musicals in the last three years, I’ve no doubt in my mind that our home grown talents can act and sing the life into even the most challenging of characters. It’s the dancing that’s worrisome. Sure, local can dance, but the Cats requirement in this department will call for years of professional training in preparation. I thought the production run will cast locals for all the characters. I recently found out that the cast, save for Lea Salonga playing Grizabella, the producers, and director are from Australia and news has it that if this Manila leg does well, they will consider performing in other parts of Asia.

Back in the 80s, having two parents who found each other through music  (this I’m assuming since I remember one photo of my mom propped on a stool, on stage, playing a folk guitar, with long wavy hair covering the sides of her face, looking like Karen Carpenter with her bell bottom jeans and printed long sleeved shirt. My dad played the acoustic guitar. They probably knew each other from inter-collegiate music competitions as I’d like to assume because that’d be totally cool as a love story angle LOL. They both had an extensive album collection of The Carpenters and Beatles in vinyl back in the day), my earliest recollection of Cats the Musical primarily came from a cassette audio tape with two amber color eyes printed on the cover insert. I remember playing the tape every once in a while and being fond of several lines off some tracks. There’s the ever popular Memory sung by Elaine Paige (funny, I only remember the Act 2 version and I can’t remembering ever recalling another voice singing with the “lead” character), two ladies singing something about a “cavity” not being there (made perfect sense when I was little,  sue me),  “Up, up, up, past the Russell Hotel/ Up, up, up, up, to the Heaviside Layer,” the melody for “a cat so clever as magical Mr Mistoffelees,” and a faint idea of how the chorus for “Ad-Dressing of Cats” sounded. (OMG, I can only recall the last five tracks of Act 2, meaning, I just kept on rewinding that part of the tape! WTF?! So this is how it feels after you’ve discovered the meaning of a Rosetta Stone or something equally awesome!!!)

For the 20 years in between, I never thought I’d find the time get to see Cats either in New York or London. I’ve even somewhat forgotten about the cassette audio tape that I kept on rewinding. Two days before my scheduled screening date, I tried to watch the Cats DVD movie and the movement, acting, overall production finally gave those weird lyrics in my head context. That part where a shoe fell from the “heavens” and the cat chorus suddenly stopped what they were doing altogether, startled as cats would be in real life from a loud sound, sent me clutching my belly in a fit of laughter. The Jellicle Dance got me entranced. The “Naming of Cats” lent perspective to the reason why cats sometimes look as though they’re in a “profound meditation” state (turns out, as the story went, they’re busy trying to recall their third name: The name that no human research can discover/But the at himself knows, and will never confess). Yes, I came prepared for the live act and, I thought to myself,  this run better be at par with what I’ve seen.

To get an entire sense of Cats from the prose delivered on stage either in said verse,  lyrical chorus, or song coupled with dance or movement is expecting too much from this or any other Cats staging. The DVD movie version and reading the online transcription of lyrics afterwards helped me understand the story more. Seriously, the colors, costume, familiar melody, dance, props, and lighting would snatch my attention away so fast, I am in most times left filling plot gaps in my mind with dance and movements for context. Sometimes, I don’t even want to exert so much effort in following what the lyrics say anymore. What I thoroughly enjoyed seeing were the little things: cats stretching, clawing each other subtly, nudging another cat, gracefully moving from one point to another in the shadows, dance adlibs mimicking movements of real live cats, stuff like that. Seasoned and veterans to that ways of the cat, that’s what this Australian cast is.

Much anticipated is how Lea can perform Memory in Act 2. The entire of Act 1 and half of Act 2 was lined with plots and sub plots that will supposedly make this scene huge. The audience look forward to it as much as the characters do when finally a cat is chosen to be reborn to a different jellicle life. As everybody rejoices, in comes Grizabella, still despised by the community for probably having left them in the past (a popular take on the untold side of the story). The air is filled with tension and older cats keep the younger ones away from the slow walking, poor poised, “glamour cat.” And then, she sings. She sings of the past, how life has been for her, lonely, dreaming, of holding on at those moments when she was at her prime for strength, the cycle of days in solitude, and of hoping for a second chance at life in a weathered but beautiful voice that’s full of earnest longing. She does not force the message nor assert herself but the sincerity in her delivery can make even the toughest of cats believe that she of all deserves this break. Unanimously, they all do in the end. A half-baked delivery of the song and the scene will make the audience wonder what made the tramp deserve such a popular vote. Her standing up as the orchestra swells, ushering her plea to “touch me, it’s so easy to leave me…” should have left no doubt in everyone’s mind had it been sung with deep seeded self-resentment, penitence, and longing. Quite frankly, I was underwhelmed. Yes, there’s power in her voice. Words come out crystal clear and full with not even a hint of a single bum note anywhere. It’s the delivery of the emotion called for by the song and character’s situation that’s been compromised. Was I expecting too much, probably? Anybody would for premium priced seats.

For those who applauded the Filipino verse of Memory as sung solo by Sillabub (performed by Alyse Davies), the lines were translated by multi-awarded poet, Pete Lacaba. It goes as follows:

Liwanag, hanapin ang liwanag
Ang iyong ala-ala ang… gabay na sundin
Sa liwanag,, ligaya ay matatagpuan
Bagong buhay ay darating

Over all, the production value of Cats “Now and Forever” the Musical in Manila is top notch. Everything justifies the cost, really. Good thing they’ve extended up to the end of this week (August 22). For those on a budget, General Admission tickets go for P1,030/P772.5. There are very limited seats available, I heard. For screening schedules, ticket availability, and prices, visit the ticketworld website or call (+632) 891.9999 for details.

Here are some photos from the show.

Watch vids taken during the pre-gala at Gibbs Cadiz’s site here and his review of Cats here. Wala ka pa ring kupas, Mr Cadiz!

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Super Junior Super Show 2 “Chu~” Performance Vid (HD)

The second and last vid I’ll post of Super Junior’s Super Show 2 concert is their performance of “Chu~.” Chica, a good friend who also watched the show in the SVIP Dance area commented, “were they just practicing on stage? What the heck were they doing situps with one on top of the other?!” I don’t get it that much either. It’s a fanservice that never fail to give fans the giddys. Notice the way the crowd would shout in deafening chorus when the boys do pseudo-intimacy-ish acts, albeit fleetingly? There you go.

In “Chu~,” their third to the final number (I think), RyeoWook, ShinDong, HeeChul, EunHyuk, and DongHae do their song and dance antics, cross dressed as ladies. Highlights for each might well be: Ryeowook’s dance adlib at the side of the stage (1:08-1:12), Shindong’s stunt (2:25-2:31), Heechul’s kawai pose (2:32), EunHyuk’s “slutty” dance moves – the part that cracked me up the most LOL (1:22-1:32), and Donghae’s final pose at the end of the song (3:05).

As mentioned in my “Sorry, Sorry” performance post, two posts back has all 32 photos I got during Super Junior’s last leg of Super Show 2. This vid and those shots go out to all SuJu fans. Enjoy!

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Super Junior Super Show 2 “Sorry, Sorry” Performance Vid (HD)

As promised, I’m sharing to the world my video capture of Super Junior’s “Sorry, Sorry” performance during the Super Show 2 held at the Araneta (Manila, Philippines) last Saturday, April 10, 2010. Before this number, Faith asked nonchalantly, “are you going to dance or take a vid because you can only choose one and you can’t back out once you’ve made your choice.” Strict much? LOL!

While the vid was being uploaded and as I was giving it a title, I was hesitant to write “fancam” because I’m not that big of a fan, quite honestly. Since that’s how vid caps were usually tagged, I went on ahead and did it anyway. If you want to see this in its full HD glory, view the full-sized 720p version directly from the youtube page.

One post back has all 32 photos I got during the Super Show. This vid and those shots go out to all SuJu fans. Enjoy!

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Photos from the Super Junior Super Show 2 Manila Concert

In this post are 32 photos I took from the Super Junior Super Show 2 Manila (Philippines) Concert held on April 10, 2010 at the Araneta Colosseum. Initially, I thought the Upper Box B spectators will be too far away from the stage.  Far, yes, but not too far.  I saw SuJu together with Faith, Kring, and Jimmy. Good Times.

Before KPop haters, who most probably watch local soaps in earnest (talk about class. LOL), disown me, let it be known that only the 733t has seen the concert considering the 7.5k (VIP), 6.5k (Upper Box A), 4.5k (Upper Box B), and 1k (for Gen Ad) ticket prices. The VIPs got the best deal: front row seats to over 3 hours of adrenaline pumped entertainment. The numbers Super Junior performed were well paced. Videos were played to intermission the next set and give the performers time to prepare and change wardrobe. Despite some numbers being obviously lip synced, and in spite Araneta’s next to horrible acoustics (maybe because of substandard sound equipment or them using low quality audio file, I can’t be absolutely sure), the Korean boy group delivered quality entertainment: a true testament of showmanship. I now understand how they managed to draw so much love from fans throughout Asia. Several of theirs were not present but they flew in 2 other “members” from China (as Kring explained).

My question to the fans: were the fan-service enough and to your liking? A curious term, this “fan service.” I only came across it of late and, up to now, I still can’t fully grasp the concept.

[EDIT] Click here to see the full HD vid of “Sorry, Sorry,” taken from the concert.

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Trying out Bidding in Local Auction Site Winila.com

Look what a cat dragged in! On plurk, a user shared a link to a new and locally maintained online bidding site, Winila.com. What made me curious to try signing up for this site, after navigating it and despite me ever engaging in online auctions, are the past winning bids on premium gadgets on Winila’s Past Auctions archive. Observe:

iPod Shuffle 2Gb: winning bid, $5.10 (retail price $73.75)
iPod Shuffle 4Gb: winning bid, $0.14 (retail price $98.75)
Apple iPod Nano 8GB: winning bid, $3.14 (retail price $186.25)
Skullcandy Lowrider: winning bid, $0.40 (retail price $65.00)
HP 250GB Pocket Media Drive: winning bid, $0.14 (retail price $59.99)
Sony PlayStation 3 Slim (120GB): winning bid, $2.33 (retail price $410.00)

The true test here, however, and I could only verify after winning one or more (hopefully) of the bids is the ease of payment, hassle-free shipment, and smooth/fast claim of product after payment has been made. That one still remains to be seen. For you to bid, you will need to have “bid vouchers,” and 20 bid vouchers cost $10.00. Bid vouchers are also being offered for bidding and could be had for much less. As I understand it, one bid voucher for one bid. Should you want to out-bid a current bid (that out-bid your previous bid), that will cost you another bid voucher. I saw that bids came in increments of $0.01 so 20 bid vouchers can go a long way.

[Edit, around 4 hours from original date of post] I got to see an iPod Touch 8Gb auction near its close and, boy, was it intense!! Apparently, per winila’s Help Center page, “WiniLa Open Auctions have additional rules to make bidding fair – each bid you place increases the auction timer by 10 seconds, and every 30^th bid increases the auction timer by 2 minutes.  The last bidder to place a bid when the timer hits zero is the winner!” Each time a bid goes in, the time counter gets extended accordingly! There was no need to refresh the screen because you will see the updated time and latest bid price at real time. I watched in earnest as the bids rose from $0.04 until the final price of $0.92.

Below is the Press Release material sent to me by Winila. Let’s do this!

Entertainment shopping site Winila to Launch in IP e-Games Domination IV

Bringing you the best of online shopping, e-Game’s partner WiniLa invites everyone to its grand launch at Domination IV–the biggest online gaming event in the Philippines.

WiniLa is a new and exciting online auction offering daily discounts on the hottest gadgets and accessories in the market. Developed and maintained locally, the site allows bidders to receive up to 80% savings on pre-selected technology and lifestyle brands such as Playstation 3, Wii, XboX, Blackberry, iPhone, iPod, Mac Mini, Apple TV, Sony digital cameras, and Nokia mobile phones.

Just register for FREE at www.Winila.com to avail these features:

• Choose from different bid-credit packages that suits your budget
• Engage in auctions that start at a price of zero
• Buy an item outright without bidding
• Use an automated Winbroker who will do the bidding for you
• Ease of use with multiple bid windows
• Earn free bid credits for every friend referral

You may also experience WiniLa at Domination IV happening on April 10, 2010 (Saturday) at the SMX Convention Center, SM Mall of Asia, Pasay City. To celebrate its grand launch, a special live auction will be held at the Winila booth for its registered users. Up for bid are i-Pods, Skullcandy headphones, Samsung 19” LCD, Sony Playstation 3 Slim, PSP Go, and other cool items.

Winila–Spend small, Win Big!

See you there!

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Four “Silver” Tickets to the Changing Lives Concert up for Grabs!

[ CONTEST IS OVER: 03.24.2010 ]

Thanks to Blogbank, I’m giving away 4 Silver Tickets (worth P1,550.40 each) to the Changing Lives concert next Saturday, March 27, 2010 to be held at the SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds, featuring Timbaland, Jojo, and Justin Timberlake!

Cutoff date for entries is 12 NN (noon, not midnight) of March 24, 2010. I’ll be selecting TWO WINNERS (using randomizer.org) from the comments section below and they will each get 2 Silver Tickets (seatmap here). Winners will be notified via email on March 24 (same date as the cutoff). Instructions on how to claim the tickets (from March 25, onwards only) will be emailed to the lucky ones (from an office in Salcedo Village in Makati City and fairly easy to find as it is accessible from Ayala Ave.). The mechanics are SIMPLE, as promised!

1. Share the following line in TWO of your social media network sites (Facebook, Plurk, Twitter via the Tweet This function at the start of this post, Tumblr, Multiply as link, even Friendster or MySpace, etc.). No blog post required! ;-)

Get a chance to win 2 Silver Tickets to the Timbaland, Jojo, and Justin Timberlake concert via fritzified.com http://wp.me/p63Qf-I5

[EDIT: March 21, 2010 10:32pm] IMPORTANT REMINDER: Per most of the comments below, I can see that the trend is you just give me the site where you posted the text I specified. I would need to see the actual link to the post. Poyt’s and aeirin’s entries are good examples of a facebook link to the actual post, etc. No need to re-send for those who already made comments. Thanks!

2. Below, using the comment section, paste the links to the TWO “posts” you have made together with:

a. Who among the three are you most excited to see perform LIVE, and
b. Why.

Those who can’t follow instructions are automatically disqualified (dadalawa na lang yang required, parang awa nyo na, paki-sunod LOL)! That’s P3,100.80 worth for just a little effort. Make sure that you provide a valid email address (will not be shared to anyone else but will be used to contact you should you win the contest) for notifications. I’m only giving away tickets to the concert, nothing else (baka lang may humingi ng pamasahe papuntang MOA, just to make that clear LOL).

Justin Timberlake, we’ve been informed, will be performing at least 8 songs. Excited yet? Tickets are priced as follows (via Ticketworld):

.

Like  all other concerts, there will be restrictions imposed by the organizers to patrons from the gate. This is for your own safety. For a complete list of those restrictions, click here.

Good luck everyone! Let the sharing BEGIN! (First time commenters will automatically be screened as under moderation. Don’t worry, I check the blog every so often and the deadline will be enforced based on the time stamp on the comment, not at the time it was published)

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New ROFL Greenwich Pizza Ads for 2010

Sobrang Cheesy is soooooo last year.

Arpee got me and a few lucky others to meet up with Greenwich marketing execs to get a glimpse of the new Greenwich Pizza ads for 2010. I replied Monday with a “if the geniuses behind the John Lloyd sobrang cheesy ad won’t be there, I’m not going!” LOL didn’t mean it naman hrhrhr. Seriously, those guys have raised the bar so much that, at first, I wasn’t quite sure how they’d top “sobrang cheesy talaga!!!” and then we saw the new tag-line “nag-level up sa sarap!” in line with their latest offering Ultimate Hawaiian Overload Pizza that claims to have 100% more hawaiian toppings.

Here are the first three ads featuring “nag-level up sa sarap.” I went ROFL literally when I got to really listen to the dialogue. PATOK NA PATOK! Way to go guys!

“Bala sa bala” (LOL line: “ubos kung ubos!… eto pa action star… rawr!“)

“Boss” (LOL lines: “minsan lang maging big time eh!” and “excuse me… my coat!”)

“Biceps” (LOL line: “Haneeeep! Flex ng flex!”)

So, you may ask, “kamusta naman ang pizza?” Pucha, natikman ko kagabi at kung olats to, di ko na to baon ko ngayon!!!

This morning while waiting for the lift in our office building lobby, I saw “Biceps” and said to myself, “that’s soooooo last night!” LOL Oh, and check out the new box, designed by Team Manila. I remember back in 2005, kami lang ata ni Ade ang sobrang fan ng Team Manila. Look how that baby has grown! *tears*

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