Although Jekyll and Hyde may not have that big famous song that most Broadway musicals, it is still quite fascinating to watch, especially that the book by Robert Louis Stevenson, is one of my all time favorite books! There have been Hollywood versions and adaptations of this story and this is the first musical I have seen about this story.
Well, it is great to see that Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo can also direct! I love the stage design and how it effectively anchors the story into who Dr. Jekyll is. I even love how she created a chorus who are always sinisterly looking back at the audience in most of the songs. They don't move, they just stay in the background - with no lighting on them and no movement. But once they come out as a chorus, wow, they become some sort of 'speaker' for the musical, the soul analyzing the agony Dr. Jekyll is going through.
Michael Williams is just impressive as the lead! Playing dual characters is not easy, but without much make-up, he was able to convey through voice, clever lighting and effective facial expressions, who Dr. Jekyll was and who Mr. Hyde was, as the latter appears more often in the second act of the musical. The last scene where the two duel internally with each other is surely the scene that made many in the audience give the cast a standing ovation. It was just really impressive to see him do that scene really well!
As usual, I love Cris Villonco here. I just love her voice and how cleverly she uses it to show emotion. She gives her character tenderness yet she looks tough, and conveys her love for the doomed doctor by always believing that his good nature will win in the end.
One revelation last night was Kalila Aguilos. Oh my god, listen to that voice, so clear, like a nightingale, it just wafts as she sings her songs - and she plays a hooker here, mind you. And yeah, she is hot and sexy too, I'm sure the red-blooded males in the audience had their hearts racing as Dr. Jekyll touched her there!
This is also the first time I saw Junix Inocian act. Wow, no wonder he was cast in Miss Saigon. Such commanding performance. He's like a rock and he commands the 'Greek chorus' swaying them that most of what we see is just a 'facade'.
Well, the material of this play is a bit disturbing but watch it and revel at how great Filipino actors are!
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