The show lit up the Theater at Solaire with festive holiday cheer through its rhythmic music, vivid set design, and, most importantly, graceful performances.
Christmas is a holiday for the child in us. Ballet Philippines brought this idea to life with great aplomb through its latest Christmas performance, Peter Pan, at the Theater at Solaire last week.
The show, which ran from Dec. 6 to 8, lit up the auditorium with festive holiday cheer through its rhythmic music, vivid set design, and, most importantly, graceful performances. It’s entirely different from Ballet Philippines’ 2015 performance of the same classic children’s tale by J.M. Barrie.
“The libretto, music, costumes, choreography, and sets are all completely new,” Ballet Philippines President Kathleen Liechtenstein said in the press preview last Nov. 5. “Thanks to our artistic director, Mikhail “Misha” Martynyuk, we are presenting an entirely original take on this beloved tale. Peter Pan is our Christmas gift to you.”
Related story: If Ballet Philippines is staging ‘Peter Pan,’ Christmas must be around the corner
Misha attested to this, saying, “I specifically didn’t look at Peter Pan from another company or past productions. So I have nothing to compare with my version. For this, I read the book, studied places, and details. Then I made a draft. After that, I read the book again to look from another angle and to find deeper details.”
The multi-awarded artist told The POST during the show’s premiere that it took him three months and a tremendous amount of hard work to create this production that ran for an hour and a half. “When you make a production that runs for one or two hours, you need to conceptualize around 10,000 movements or steps,” he said.
While the entire process was “difficult” for the director, everything paid off with the show fully immersing the audience from prologue to curtain call and leaving them with a sense of childhood wonder.
This is especially true for people like me who have not seen a theatrical performance in years. Everything at Peter Pan’s gala night seemed new to me and evoked a feeling of awe—from how the guests dazzled in their elegant long dresses and suits during cocktails, to how the bright lights and refined red-and-black interiors of Theater at Solaire spoke of the state-of-the-art entertainment awaiting guests that night. The experience brought me back to my childhood days when I would find magic even in the simplest scenarios on Christmas Day.
The romance of Christmas echoed throughout the show, which opened with a brief depiction of Mr. & Mrs. Darling’s love story—a scene unique to Ballet Philippines’ rendition of the classic Peter Pan.
Mrs. Darling, in her soft pink A-line dress, glided across the stage as a group of men in dark brown suits followed her like desperate suitors. The then-bachelorette couldn’t get out of the fray until her soon-to-be-husband, Mr. Darling, entered the scene, warded the other men off, and danced a meticulous pas de deux with the love of his life.
This was followed by the introduction of the main characters, particularly Wendy (played by Jemima Reyes) and her mischievous brothers, John and Michael (Emerson and Eduardson Evangelio). All three dancers personified the characters from the get-go, with their costumes consisting of a light blue sheer dress for Wendy and light gray cotton pajamas for the Darling brothers.
The Evangelio brothers perfectly illustrated the Darling brothers’ playfulness in a performance built on a variety of long jumps and petite allegro steps across the Darlings’ nursery. Reyes, meanwhile, showed the motherly young woman that Wendy is when she started chasing her brothers and insisted they all go to bed.
When all three siblings finally hit the sack, Mr. and Mrs. Darling entered the room and performed a dreamy pas de deux. But another family rumble ensued when the two young boys woke up and returned to playing tricks in the middle of the night. Adding more humor was the family’s dog, which appeared to be having fun in its own world. The scenes, which can be described as delightfully chaotic, reflected the playful yet intimate bond of the Darling family.
The fearless Peter Pan made his grand entrance when the Darling siblings were sound asleep. In true Peter Pan fashion, dancer Rudolph Capongcol flew onto the stage in a harness, prompting a joyous cheer from the audience. He was accompanied by Tinkerbell (Regina Magbitang), who bewitched the crowd each time she danced en pointe on the stage.
Like the Darling siblings, Peter Pan and Tinkerbell’s bright green costumes stayed true to the tale’s original era so that they could easily transport audiences from the fantastical realm of Neverland. While the production catered mostly to families and kids, costume designer and Misha’s wife, Eleanora Martynyuk, told Manila Times that she designed the costumes in ways that wouldn’t “clash with the overall harmony of the set design.”
“From the start, we wanted to move away from the idea of excessive brightness and make Neverland feel more grounded, like Earth and not like a cartoon. Bright colors are, of course, present but within reasonable limits,” Eleanora said.
Related story: In ‘Limang Daan,’ Ballet Philippines casts the spotlight on the Filipina
More than being aesthetically pleasing, the designer made sure that the costumes would enable dancers to perform at their best, especially for Wendy. Eleanora explained in a press release, “Her dress needed smooth lines and a fitted waist to avoid hindering complex pas de deux and adagios with Peter Pan.”
Captain Hook, who entered the story in the middle of Act I, was likewise dressed up with much meticulousness by the designer. She continued, “Captain Hook is both elegant and pirate-like, a gentleman with good education, but also has a dark soul. His suit reflects this contrast in its details.”
Captain Hook’s dark and revengeful soul was personified by Mark Balucay through how he, along with his pirate crew, kidnapped the Darling siblings and hid them in his ship. The dancer also embodied the character’s daring and passionate persona even in the simplest moves, such as a glide or gallop, executed with grace and force.
While Captain Hook has long been known as a menacing and cunning villain who’s relentless in his pursuit of revenge against Peter Pan, Ballet Philippines’ rendition of the character was instead likable and captivating. “In the original version of Peter Pan, Captain Hook died, but not in my version,” Misha told The POST. “My Captain Hook is not as evil as the original. He, too, has a happy ending.”
Related story: REVIEW: When kadamay is the ‘Request Sa Radyo’
This promise of a happy ending also made Ballet Philippines’ Peter Pan truly a unique treat for Filipino families this holiday. The story was made more fascinating for kids, with the inclusion of original humorous characters: the Darling family’s dog and, more notably, the happy dancing crocodile who, in Misha’s words, became Captain Hook’s “best friend” instead of killing him at the end of the show.
Besides Misha’s intricate and compelling libretto, music played a vital role in Ballet Philippines’ Peter Pan. “Another highlight is the music,” the director said. “I first worked on the libretto and then I made a draft of the music playlist. And I love this music. My goal is that the dancers don’t just dance, we also tell the story with their gestures in sync with our music.”
True enough, Capongcol, Rivera, and each of the dancers on stage moved with grace to the beat of the music, which was fresh, whimsical, and arresting. This music, along with the thoughtfully curated choreography, is part of the magic of Ballet Philippines’ Peter Pan which identifies with the wonders of Christmas.
The set design likewise transported the audience to the psychedelic pages of the Peter Pan tale, as each backdrop is crafted with intricacy and vibrancy. Neverland, which makes up most of the story’s setting, was brought to life with the use of giant leaf cutouts that frame the entire stage. As the story progressed, other elements were added to the stage, such as the wooden fort that represents the tree trunks of Neverwood, where the Lost Boys lived. Hook’s ship was also brought inside the theater, with wooden platforms, a staircase, ship nets, barrels, and a ship’s wheel filling up the stage.
Above all, Ballet Philippines’ Peter Pan took us back to our childhood—a time of innocence and being carefree—through the lesson it wanted to share with its audience. “This tale will teach kids and adults that the good side will always win over evil,” Misha said. Coincidence or not, it’s also a reminder of what Christmas is truly all about.
Related story: Going Home to Christmas: Why this Jose Mari Chan musical is the holiday escape you need
