WHILE most people would usually think of the sexual connotation of the acronym “DOM,” or “dirty old men,” director Dexter M. Santos promises wholesome fun with Spotlight Artists Centre’s Dirty Old Musical -- plus a lot of dancing.
Dropping by a rehearsal, BusinessWorld observed the cast -- led by five veteran theater actors -- would not only belt out high notes to OPM songs, but also strut their stuff, even doing a Michael Jackson signature move.
“Now working with them, ‘D’ would stand for ‘drive,’ because since they’re already senior actors, I was apprehensive at first. But I can now see their passion and drive. ‘O’ is ‘old’ with a question mark, because people would think the actors are already old, but when they see them perform, you make them question that it’s not about the age. And ‘M’ is ‘mesmerizing’ because of the meaning that they put in the songs, and the work that they put [in], and the experience that they bring, and the collaborative effort that they do, and they give and share their work to the production,” he said.
John Arcilla, Nonie Buencamino, Robert Seña, Michael Williams, and Bo Cerrudo (alternating with Ricky Davao), collectively known as “The Bench Boys” in the musical, will portray middle-aged men who were once famous as a boyband back in the 1980s. Fast forward to today, the fictional group reunites for a benefit concert for a sick band mate.
The cast also includes Ima Castro, Kitkat, and Fred Lo.
“When they reunited, unresolved businesses and past conflicts were opened again. Of course, in one way or another, it talked about friendship, their relationships with each other, and the things and issues every mid-lifer goes through, their physical appearance -- like if someone got fat or was balding, among other things,” the director said.
Award-winning musical director Myke Salomon (Rak of Aegis, 3 Stars and A Sun) pitched the idea for the musical to Spotlight Artists Centre, and story was later written by Rody Vera.
Mr. Seña said initially, they wanted to do it in a kundiman form for Virgin Labfest, but that would have limited it to a 30-minute play. He insisted to make it full-length.
Mr. Salomon found it challenging to do the musical arrangement for DOM.
“I bled a lot here in DOM because we used ’70s and ’80s OPM classics. There’s a limit to every song’s arrangement and you can’t just tweak it. [But] you have to consider the spirit of the original version and mix it with the soul of the scene,” Mr. Salomon said in an e-mail interview. “Good thing we needed to write original music and lyrics for the hit songs of the Bench Boys.”
The musical will feature three original songs, with “Tunay Kang Kaibigan” as the boy band’s fictional one-hit wonder, and the rest are OPM hits.
“It is a musical for all ages. They might get intimidated because it’s ’80s, but then again, it is the beauty of a jukebox. You have a repertoire, series of hit songs, and these actors can give a different meaning and flavor to it,” Mr. Santos said.
Asked what to expect from DOM, Mr. Seña said in jest: “Dancing old men? Because we have a lot of movements and choreography here so it’s kind of tiring. Imagine me doing Michael Jackson’s steps.”
But on a serious note, he added: “They can expect very good actors on stage, very good singers, very good arrangements -- and some issues on andropause. And the audience will go home with a smile because of the songs since it's very nostalgic."
