More than the books

Think that reading Rizal's works, namely "Noli me Tangere" and "El Filibusterismo" during your high school days would be merely thick books containing boring stories that seem not to apply to our modern lives? Think again.

Last Sunday, it was my first play that I have watched (that is watched OUTSIDE the Ateneo, as even during high school we are required to watch plays for our English and Filipino classes, even up to my college days now). In fact, it is my first play from the production of PETA. And even if the ticket prices and the souvenir program are for me a highway robbery (300 bucks for the ticket; got it for 250 because it is the student price, then the souvenir program costs 100 bucks . . . expensive much?), I guess it was worth it.

As I went inside the theater, it was a different kind of theater for me. Yup, with the slightly unusual setup (there is a stage at the bottom and on the top, and there are chairs at the bottom and on top as well), plus the addition of other special effects like a realistic rain effect, sound effects from toy guns, and bits of video presentation throughout the play, it was a different experience overall. More than the usual plays I would watch in the Ateneo.

As for the story of the play, it made me appreciate Rizal's work with these two great books in the sense that from this production it was able to make me (and the other people who have watched the play as well) see the story of "Noli me Tangere" and "El Filibusterismo" in a modern way. With the roles of Ibarra Marasigan, Clarissa Santos, Basilio Pilapil, Tiago Santos, Damaso Villareal, Isagani Magdangal, Salvi Salvatierra, Florentino Crisostomo, and Kumander Elias, the hundred-plus year old story of Rizal's work was given life to a modern perspective, where log bans, red tape, blackmailing, rebellion, people power, corruption, media, and the church are factors that greatly affect the story.

I've never realize even during the days when I've spent a lot of time reading and understanding (and sadly, failing in quizzes) that what Rizal is talking about the "cancer of the nation" still applies even today, where we have corrupt government officials and overpowering businessmen who control the country, making the country's cancer much worse. and despite that seemingly impossible to solve problem, there are still people out there who are honest, unlike the corrupt people out there, who still have hopes of changing the country. Well I hope that is true, especially since I am losing hope at the state of our country; these tyrants seem to have a never-ending reign in oppressing the masses. 

Well, yeah, the play itself was really good and well worth my 250 bucks. If there was a chance that our country would change . . .