TRINKLED

Christian fizzles, Karylle sizzles and Rowena Vilar steals the West Side show

Last week, I braved Friday night traffic on EDSA to catch Stages' production of West Side Story, the musicale inspired by William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, starring balladeer Christian Bautista and Zsa Zsa Padilla's fairhaired daughter, Karylle.

I was coming to the play cold both literally and figuratively . All I had for ammunition were an umbrella, brief remembrances of the 1961 movie and the knowledge that West End star Joanna Ampil and Karylle were subbing for the part of Maria.

I needn't have bothered. A montage of young hooligans hanging onto a chain link fence starts off the story on a sinister note and ratchets up the tension with the first near-rumble between the American Jets, complete with 70s Hell's Kitchen accents, and the Puerto Rican Sharks . There's an overall familiarity to the love story of Tony and Maria , two starcrossed lovers who become victims of fate. When they meet at a dance and see each other from a crowded room, you know that they will fall in love, know that people will come in between them, know that they will try to defy the odds and fail completely. What matters though is the journey and for those who have seen the show, the overall experience of West Side Story is akin to a sledgehammer blow to the senses.

First off, the cast assembled by Menchu Launchengco-Yulo is truly superb. Every person who's seen even parts of the the musicale before knows the various demands made to the cast both in song and dance. There is not a song to be wasted in the bunch, and thankfully, the entire cast delivers, whether its the confrontational America, the tension filled Cool, or even the soaring Tonight. Even the sets and the lighting brought a different character and tone to the whole tale.

When I first heard that Bautista would be playing the lead in a Broadway musicale, I honestly thought that he was too vanilla and his voice too saccharine sweet to handle the vocal calisthenics needed for the part of the reformed gangleader and romantic lead Tony. To his credit, Bautista carries himself well through most of the singing except for some high notes that came off reed-thin instead of overpowering. Acting-wise, he makes a believable lovestruck suitor although a bit stiff on stage.

On the other hand, Karylle was a revelation! The actress, whom I last saw as one of the four leads in the TV show Encantada, hits the tough high notes like a pro. Her ballet background serves her well in the flirty but fun I am Pretty, and her scenes with Bautista are both tender and radiant.

The biggest surprise of the evening, however, came from Australian-born Rowena Vilar who plays the role of Anita. Vilar electrifies every scene she is in simply through her presence, her verve and her total commitment to character. After the first act, our small group was raving about her performance and asking who she was. She simply mesmerizes the audience through her every perfect song and dance and dredges up the audience's compassion in the near rape scene at Doc's bar. No wonder Lea Salonga is so impressed with her.

Other cast members also carry off their performances well although not as memorable as these three. One minor quibble though: there were several times when the sound system would pop and crackle, which sometimes obscured what the actors were saying.

Without a doubt, this is THE theater event of the year and should be watched by an even greater number of people before its theatrical run ends.