Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah all over again.

When I first found out last year through the rumor mill that Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah Ze Musikal was going to replace the shelved Ganito Kami Noon, I actually started wondering whether I should watch it again. Ika nga ni Tad, "Meron pa bang hindi pa nakakapanood ng Zsa Zsa?" Pero malamang, marami pa diyan, like this person who once said, "Am I the type of person who'd watch Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah? Pffft. (Maski friend ko siya, lumabas sakin ang pagka-hypocrite niya.) Anyway, so sure, that particular musical has been one of Tanghalang Pilipino's best selling original plays, but would I want to watch it again? When Tad finally gave me the news that the cast was expanding and he was one of the new taumbayans, I gave in. Sige na nga, manonood na ako, hahahaha!

I was starving when I had arrived in CCP last Friday, as I had taken a bus from ATC that directly goes to Vito Cruz. Stopover at Jollibee for some takeout. Should I eat in the buff, at the steps of the main entrance or in the LT lobby? Too many people at the main entrance, and a line was still forming. Took the artists entrance and after peering inside the buff, I suddenly decided to eat in the lobby. Hahaha, found Jeff, Betsy and Edcel (with friend whose name I forgot, sorry!) there, who were also there to watch Zsa Zsa. I practically inhaled my burger and fries in front of them as well all stood around waiting for the house to open.

My 2nd ticket was for Opa, but she was running kind of late, so I left her ticket with Paolo before I went inside. Heck, LT had reserved seating for this show, so I wasn't really in a hurry to scramble for a seat. 2nd row nga, but all the way at the end, hahaha!

I have to say, having more ensemble members in the cast worked wonders for the bigger venue. When I last saw this musical in RCBC, they did their best to maximize the stage, but it still sort of didn't work. First thing I noticed? Mikki was really dancing! Hahaha! But like the same old Mikki, he attaches himself to the person closest to him. Regardless of what was happening onstage, makikita mo nakakapit pa rin siya sa isang tao, ahehe. Eula was spectacular as Zsa Zsa, as usual. And of course, Tuxqs and Joey as the Ada-Didi tandem was still a hit, as they do own these roles.

(With that last sentence, let me just say that Rustom Padilla and Zsa Zsa Padilla had never graced the stage for the production. It seems that there are some people who believe that the original actors of Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah were the actors in the movie. Nyahahay. Ano buh.)

Going back to the show, I got to watch Meliza as Queen Femina that night. It's refreshing to see her Queen Femina as a small but terrible villain, ahahaha. Well, she did manage to pull off looking large onstage. But it was so funny when she clambered up the steps leading to the pole on stage right. And there was Ring as the new Sharon C (Mayen is now playing Vilma S). During the Transmorphication Song when all the Amazonistas were being carried across the stage by ensemble members in black, Sharon C couldn't be carried so she just crossed the stage herself while "carrying" her boobs, ahahaha!

On the technical side, I realized that something's a bit off in the theater's acoustics. Or maybe that was just because I was sitting way way at the end of the second row? Ahahaha. But if you listen carefully, there were popping and crackling sounds coming from the speakers (from the mics, I'm not sure) at the oddest times.

Oh, by the way, during the intermission, when I looked in the direction of the AFLS group, I was surprised to see Carlo sitting in the same row, hahaha! (Was that Oliver with you?) Anyway, he had to leave after the first act, so Opa and I managed to move to the center, taking their place. I had a stiff neck just sitting in my original seat, ahahaha. Thanks again, Carlo, ahehehe. At least Opa and I got to enjoy the opening song of Act 2. Super colorful ensemble, and the big cast worked for "Magsasalpukan Na." Too bad the original intimate treatment was sort of lost when they tried to sell merchandise to the crowd, ahaha. But going back to the first act, they did manage to invade the house as the mumus as Zsa Zsa, Didi, Dodong and Father Bernie ran after them. Speaking of the big cast, there were more crazy antics among the crowd scenes. Especially near the end of the show when Lao came in again as the news reporter. Hahaha, there was an extra prop that made the chismosa crowd mouth the words then read it aloud with Lao's new character as reporter, hahahaha!

And yay, they kept the happy swing from the last run! Hahaha! Yun nga lang, when Tuxqs was already there, the seat almost hit the back wall while swinging. Or was the effort on the swing already calculated? Ahahaha.

So yeah, even though I had once said na "Wala pa bang nagsasawa sa Zsa Zsa?" I'm now eating my own words. Yes, I still enjoyed it. Congrats to the entire cast! =)

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Yesterday, as it was Valentine's Day, I dropped by CCP in between shows to see Tad, teeheeheehee. He wanted to give me a Starbucks treat, but because I was starving, he gave in to my craving for Teriyaki Boy. The poor dear was allergic to most seafood, but thank goodness for veggie tempuras. Hung around with him in the dressing room after dinner. Ahahaha, after all this time, I have never stuck around during shows while he prepped up and did his makeup, so it was fascinating just watching him do so as we talked. Promise, mas marami pa siyang alam sa makeup than I do, and stage makeup pa ang gamit niya, hahahaha!

Let me just say that for me, Valentine's Day can still be so overrated. I just appreciate simple joys like a surprise visit like this. Oo na, mababaw lang talaga kaligayahan ko, hehehe.

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I usually type random things in my phone's notepad when I don't have a real notepad handy for random thoughts. I've written this particular note sometime last year, and I have forgotten all about it.

Nakakapagod mag-effort, so I'll stop trying.

Seeing the unlimited call ad of Globe made me remembered certain memories.

Friends calling on the landline late at night. "Just because." Naghananap lang ng kausap, or some random thought popped in their minds and needed to share.

There were also the times unlimited calls using Sun Cellular was a huge trend. I ended up buying my own Sun prepaid sim card and talked to friends. Effort pa talaga na lumabas ako sa backyard para kausapin sila because dun lang malakas ang signal. Never mind the 15-minute limit. Dial na lang ulit, hahaha.

YM instant message windows popping up by friends (usually invisible) that you haven't talked in ages can also lead to some of the best conversations.

Yep, random nga. No time stamp whatsoever, but I can tell this was written quite a long time ago, hahaha!