Christine Allado proves why she is a rising star on London’s West End—she slays with her voice and magnetic stage presence. Add Whitney Houston’s songs to the mix, and the musical delivers on a fun night out.
Over the last few months, social media and the news have been inundated with news and posts of what is poised to be the hottest ticket of Manila’s 2025 theater season: 9Works Theatrical’s The Bodyguard over at the brand new Proscenium Theater in Rockwell. Finally, the show opened last weekend to much fanfare, and very high expectations. As the lights went up and the music swelled, there was one clear truth: Christine Allado is the star of this show, and she is bringing it from lights up to curtain call.
When news broke that Allado would be taking on the iconic role of Rachel Marron in The Bodyguard, the consensus was “YES!” With the songs of Whitney Houston at stake, it would take pipes like hers to pull off this “beast of a show” as she puts it.
From the moment she stepped onstage singing the first lines of Queen Of The Night, she was in command of the room. All eyes were on her, and they never really wandered off for every moment she was on, which was 75% of the show.
There was no doubt why or how Allado found fame on London’s West End, jumping all in to every scene. Including the bed scene at the start of Act 2, to which the audience was not shy to show their kilig for. Her defining moment? When she had to belt out the iconic I Will Always Love You. It was flawless, pitch perfect, and could give the original a run for its money. You can fight me on that. This was Allado’s show, and she made sure everyone knew it! Slaayyy!
Of course, if you have a superstar, you do need a bodyguard, as the title implies. Standing tall and incredibly handsome, Matt Blaker was perfectly cast as Frank Farmer. You knew he could protect you! Perhaps the only downside really was that the show didn’t present enough opportunity to hear him sing. And having just ended an international tour playing Billy Flynn in Chicago, we wanted to hear more of him. His karaoke bit was quite charming though, and, at least, there was the performance number at the end where he got a bit of solo. Whew! Let’s hope he finds his way back to Manila again sometime soon, where we can hear him put his vocal chops on full display.
The spotlight also needs to be shone on the supporting cast, who added layers to the narrative, keeping us invested in what happens next. Sheena Palad, as Nickie Marron, came off as sympathetic, and proved her mettle both as an actress and a singer. Theater veteran (and it just has to be said, Going Bulilit alumni) CJ Navato, despite a limited number of scenes, was still impactful as FBI agent Rey Court (he needs more stage time!). The Bodyguard also marks Tim Yap’s theater comeback, and his take on Sy Specter felt like a welcome tailor-fit just for him.
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During the press conference for the show, Guevara teased that they were going to bring in more of the story’s dark side to this staging, given that the mysterious stalker was the crux of the story. The question was how, to which he coyly replied, “You’ll see.” To which we say, yeah that worked.
Without any spoilers, their approach calls to mind scenes from the likes of Criminal Minds and Law & Order, from the creepy letters with the cutout letters, pun intended, to the images playing on the screen. Which is why major props go to Vien King, fresh off of a solid turn as Buddy Foster in Sideshow a few months back, as the musical’s big bad. Rumor has it that he was challenged to give his character gravitas and depth, sans any real lines—a task he pulled off quite convincingly, giving all of us the creeps as his body language changed as his obsession grew. Bonus points for that shirtless moment, which sent the temperature in the room up, way up. Sorry Matt, but Vien wins this one!
Let’s be honest, The Bodyguard isn’t the best show there is out there. Much like the movie, it had a flimsy plot, so the musical was banking on the music, the dance numbers, and the kilig factor to reel audiences in. So the biggest flaw of the Manila show, honestly, is because of the material they had to work with. But it is what it is. The staging itself was screaming for more. Of everything. Bigger sets, wilder costumes, exaggerated production numbers. Maybe even a platform for Rachel’s divas – Radha, Faye Castro, and Jasmine Fitzgerald, who were barely seen in the back. Just more. The hype served up a much bigger message, but the actual show felt quite small. On such a huge 16m x 16m stage at that..
Fortunately, they had this cast. All of whom wore their heart on their sleeve, and packing a one-two punch every chance they got. The singing, undoubtedly, was excellent, and the dancers were on point, again, pun intended. Allado and Blaker took the stage by the horns, and had us still rooting for some version of a happy ending. But that only goes so far. Hopefully, this is just opening weekend jitters, with a sprinkling of technical adjustments waiting in the wings. Looking beyond all that, The Bodyguard is, still, quite a fun watch. As someone told me just today, “I haven’t stopped singing all the songs!” She is not wrong. After all, we did jump to our feet for to sing I Wanna Dance With Somebody along with the cast during curtain call.
9Works Theatrical’s production of The Bodyguard runs until October 19, at the Proscenium Theater. Shows are at 8 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 3 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are available via Ticketworld.
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