‘Na-miss ko ’to’: Live shows back at Resorts World

“Na-miss ko ’to!”

That was the buzzword heard from the lips of 10 of the cast members of the long-running Full House Theater Company-Resorts World Manila (RWM) original musical Ang Huling El Bimbo (AHEB) whose reunion concert, dubbed Muling El Bimbo, was restaged recently for two nights at RWM’s Newport Performing Arts Theater.

the performers of ‘Muling El Bimbo’ take a bow.

Among the ten actors of the show were Bibo Reyes, Reb Atadero, Tanya Manalang, Gian Magdangal, Sheila Francisco, Carla Guevara-Laforteza, Gab Pangilinan, OJ Mariano, Topper Fabregas and Vic Robinson.The program consisted of numbers from AHEB — songs by The Eraserheads woven into a story of four college buddies whose friendship is tested by a tragedy
— anchored by its title track.

The performances, accompanied by the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, were topnotch, all artists apparently buoyed by the presence of a live audience, never mind if the scripted spiels were too chatty at some point.

In hindsight, RWM boss Kingson Sian was right when he told the crowd, after curtain call, that AHEB — whose third run in 2020 was cut short by the pandemic — will go on and on just like a classic Broadway or West End musical.

“Na-miss ko ’to,” Sian said.

Judging by the lusty cheering, the feeling was mutual on the part of the crowd.