‘Twelfth Night’ under the stars
The Ayala Triangle Gardens came alive with Make it Makati’s presentation of Shakespeare In The Park, featuring a reimagined take on the beloved comedy set under the stars
It was a balmy Saturday evening at the Ayala Triangle Gardens, where a crowd of 600-strong gathered for a bit of Shakespeare. Shakespeare In The Park, that is! With picnic blankets and snacks in tow – including some champagne and charcuterie - families, groups of friends, and even pets were spread out across the grassy knoll to catch CAST PH’s staging of Twelfth Night. As the sun starts to set, and the actors sing their way to the stage, expect one riotous romp under the stars, with a side of the Backstreet Boys. No cap.
Rafael Jimenez, Teia Contreras, and Dean Daniel Rosen play multiple characters in the CAST PH's Twelfth Night
Photos by Elizabeth S. Timbol
Twelfth Night is one of William Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. In a nutshell, it follows the story of twins Viola and Sebastian, both of whom presumed the other was dead when they were separated in a shipwreck. In a hilarious case of mistaken identity, Viola pretends to be man, calling herself Cesario. She gets sent to court the Duke Orsino’s lady love Countess Olivia, who falls in love with him, well, her. As with all Shakespearean tomes, there is some trickery involved, this time through the workings of Malvolio, a steward in Olivia’s household. When Sebastian resurfaces, even more chaos ensues as everyone tries to figure out both who is who, and who’s in love with who.
CAST PH artistic director Nelsito Gomez, who also took on the directorial reins for this play seemed to be in the mood to just take the quirkiness of this story and run with it. For one, he strips it all down, with everyone in modern day wear, and minimal props. Save for Dean Daniel Rosen, who, as Malvolio, strutted across the stage in yellow tights and lace up shoes! A brave soul indeed! Let’s just say Gomez capitalized on his best asset in this show – an extremely talented cast, which included the likes of Altair Alonso, Cathy Azanza-Dy, Jillian Itaas, Rafael Jimenez, and more. To be honest, it just looked like they were having a great time up there. That they managed to keep a straight face from start to finish is a feat in and of itself. Major props go to Tarek El Tayech, who, quite literally had everyone in stitches. Once he broke out the Karaoke machine, he had everyone ROTFL. Having last seen him in Othello, this was quite a revelation. In a good way.
