When we hear of “Mulan”, most of us would usually associate it with Lea Salonga, Cristina Aguilera, the song “Reflection”, and of course Disney. But this time, I believe Tanghalang Pilipino has created another point of association whenever people mention “Mulan”. People will now ask if we’re talking about Disney or that local children's play buy TP.
Music and Color
Music and color are the elements that will remain vivid in the audience's mind about TP's stage adaptation of "The Ballad of Mulan".
As a children's play, it had to have a set design (e.g. lighting, props.) that can capture the attention and interest of young viewers. And TP was effective on that aspect. The color combination of the costumes alone will definitely attract kids. But I guess, the most interesting and eye-catching was the use of gigantic costumes of the Gods (Jade Emperor and Empress Wang Mu).
Who wouldn't be amazed to see talking giants? The use of gigantic costumes assisted in making the audience, the kids specially, understand the role of Gods in the story - Giants mean power and control. Actually, the giants reminded me of an episode from Batibot where the sun and rain (was it rain?) were fighting.
Meanwhile, since it's a stage musical, another important element to look at is the music. “Naturalized", that's the way a literature major friend coined my description of the music for the play. The idea is simple. It’s the ability to adapt a music from a foreign country (
At first I was really thinking why the acting was exaggerated. Imagine, whenever an actor delivered his/her line, it was accompanied by a mime. They acted out almost every word uttered. Just imagine the actions whenever people are singing charismatic songs (e.g. Welcome to the Family). I realized that I was so dumb. Of course, the acting had to be exaggerated for the younger audience to understand and appreciate it. That also made the play a bit hilarious and entertaining.
The fight scenes were choreographed well. Every action was apt to the strike of the music. It was like watching a fight scene in dance form.
Beyond the Aesthetic
Remember that TP’s theme for this season is ‘Power Plays.’ Of course, beyond the comic way of executing the ballad of Mulan is the power struggle. TP has always been known for bringing thought-provoking plays – tackling social issues. While we may think that Mulan is something that should be focused on the heroism and personal issues of the main character, TP was able to go beyond that. It has presented the struggle of women for gender equality. However, this is something I’m not sure if the young viewers understood. It might just appear that Jade Emperor is a bad god who wants war. Well, I’m not sure. But if I were a kid, that could be my interpretation.
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