a week ago ata i watched 3 plays for the price of 100. It was good to be in the bastion of culture here in Manila. I was with the bitter highness. I saw people who remind me of my not so long ago theatre past. They're here to stay anyway and everybody knows everybody. It was the virgin labfest of the writers bloc. It used to be in PETA but i dunno how it happened that it felt like an independent organization. It's a very 'elite' group of playwrights and theatre enthusiasts composed of people with a Palanca attached to their names and soon to be's. But actually, they're just jolly and creatively shy type of persons who like to write a lot. I watched the gender's night  and here's a rundown:

ATENG

by Vince Dejesus (teacher ko to sa Peta!)

Obviuosly its about a dominant bakla in the form of Buddy C. (he used to be my husband in a raket we were into). He's the Ateng. He's name is Kiwi. His brother Juicy is a complete contradiction of his name because Kiwi thinks all his brother's senses are juiced out for spending a measly 1495 pesos for a very shining jologs named Onyx (like the precious stone).  It's a big issue for Kiwi since they're poor and they are about to be cut off from electricity. He negotiates with the jologs in a very visually masochistic and Ricky Reyes way--- using a bleacher, steamer and blow dryer to peril Onyx's sanctity.

The negotiation is unrealistic but it provides a happy surrealism for all gays out there who wants to feed vengeance on milkmaid men. This is the gay Andres Bonifacio's way of striking back at the seat of gay oppression. Of course we all know that it wasn't classy since Andres Bonifacio is jologs to begin with as compared to a gay version of Jose Rizal who rigged the enemies with the written word.  Of course, you won't miss out a stomach on their openly gay and gay arguments. The question is if they got their money from Onyx? Well, their electricity was still cut off. It wasn't important anyway, at least they had their fill of redemption at the end that no bright lights of Meralco can give.

SISTER OUT LAW

by Lani Montreal

This is a lesbian play. It opens with a Maria Clara feel in a song stating that Filipinas are mahinhin and malambing. Nye-nye... Then the girl who sings strips. Wow. The opening has a promise and then you find out later it wasn't fulfilled. I don't like this play or the way it was presented. It was too artsy  and coming off as absurd. And the stripping? What was that for? I like women's bodies but Angeli Bayani's body was not put into good use. Hay, di ko maintindihan ang play na ito kaya I can't give a sound judgement. It felt like somebody gave me 120 reading glasses with my 20-20 vision.  Well, at least i discovered a new song by Tracy Chapman. 

GEE GEE AT WATERINA

(i forgot who wrote this, Dennis something ata)

Did you know that Lou Veloso is a diamond? He's so damn good. He played Waterina which is based on the life of Markova the Comfort Gay. Grabe... He's a fucking good actor and all we know of him is that he's a boob tube jester. It opens on the rooftop building where Waterina stays. Gee Gee comes in to bring a check to which he will give to Waterina as payment for his life story as a comfort gay that was played by Dolphy. Their hilarious arguments revolve around the price of the check, what will they do about it and what comes after that money. There are so many raw and polished gay nuances in this play that makes the audience feel like eavesdropping on an actual gay conversation. The laitan, landian, laglagan and all those parloristang badings are known for are put into full pomp. Gee Gee provides a luscious character since he is a known straight city councilor with dreams of serving the Republic of the Philippines on the outside and a big fat loud-mouthed faggot inside. 

It's a gay and bonggacious outlook on how secretly desolate a life of an old faded gay can be. Waterina suddenly breaks his voice and asks in a very oldie fag way on what would people think of him after they watched his life story. And suddenly you empathize his feeling. You become an old kulubot gay yourself and know how striking what he said can be to you. It's so excruciatingly painful to talk about these matters in a seemingly carnal, non-chalant, unaffected  Diana Ross meets Barbra Streisand kind of way. And that's the drama of it. Yet it holds on for them as long as they have men and young bagets for their mouths to water upon.

What a gay life indeed.