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WATCH: Eraserheads hits get theater treatment for 'Huling El Bimbo' musical

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<p>MANILA -- Set to delight Eraserheads fans in July, Resorts World Manila&#x27;s &quot;Ang Huling El Bimbo&quot; weaves together a cohesive narrative from some 20 hits of the iconic band, about friends who drifted apart and reunite two decades later.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/life/04/26/hebcast.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>&#x27;Ang Huling El Bimbo&#x27; cast (from left): Topper Fabregas, OJ Mariano, Tanya Manalang, Reb Atadero, Boo Gabunada, Gian Magdangal, and Jon Santos. <em>Resorts World Manila</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>In a press conference Tuesday at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, where the production will be staged, cast members gave a preview of what to expect, with performances of the titular song, and another Eraserheads hit &quot;With A Smile.&quot;</p><p>Those two tunes are among the quartet&#x27;s most enduring hits, but the musical&#x27;s director, Dexter Santos (&quot;Maxie the Musical,&quot; &quot;Orosman at Zafira&quot;), pointed out that the music selection was &quot;not about the hits, but what the story needs.&quot;</p><p>&quot;What songs do we need in order to tell the story? [We prioritized] the narrative first, before the songs,&quot; he said.</p><p>Stage veteran Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, artistic director of production outfit Full House Theater Company, shared that the band members &quot;were very gracious&quot; during negotiations to acquire the song rights for the musical.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><div id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1_Container"> <ivs-player id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-vid="1435177" data-ivs-floating="1"></ivs-player> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/iframe-parent.js"></script> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script> </div></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="~//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="~//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>&quot;They allowed us to use what we thought [we needed], and then give them the list, and then they will check it. From what we hear, they loved it,&quot; she told reporters on the sidelines of the press conference.</p><p>Asked whether Eraserheads, composed of Ely Buendia, Marcus Adoro, Buddy Zabala, and Raimund Marasigan, had any input on the narrative, Yulo answered: &quot;They gave the permission to use the songs, but had nothing to with the story. The story&#x27;s completely something we came up with, given the material.</p><p>&quot;Their songs tell a story, and some of the songs have angst, they&#x27;re kind of heavy, so it was a matter of what songs now can we use to create the story. Kami [ang] nagtahi.&quot;</p><p>Prior to finalizing the music selection, Yulo said Resorts World had already given them the working title -- &quot;Ang Huling El Bimbo&quot; -- which then became a broad-strokes guide of the story they could tell using the rest of Eraserheads&#x27; catalogue.</p><p>Stitching them together was no easy feat, according to musical director Myke Salomon (&quot;Rak of Aegis,&quot; &quot;3 Stars and a Sun&quot;). &quot;Mahirap siya, kasi tinatagpi-tagpi namin to tell a story. So hindi siya puwedeng isang scene tapos isang buong kanta,&quot; he said.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-QCetFIDYWY?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="~//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="~//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>The musical arrangement, as well as the interpretations of the cast, were also key to achieving a coherent narrative. &quot;It&#x27;s a musical naman, it&#x27;s not a tribute album, so we can do anything,&quot; Salomon explained.</p><p>Director Santos added: &quot;We don&#x27;t want to be slaves to the lyrics, or slaves to the songs. These songs, you&#x27;ve heard them on the radio already. I think we have now the opportunity to translate them live, into a Pinoy musical. We might as well grab that opportunity to tell you stories, create new contexts, find new characters on how to sing them, change the dynamics of them.&quot;</p><p>Despite these variations, Yulo noted that the musical will be faithful to the original lyrics, even those with curse words.</p><p>&quot;We are not changing any lyric. If we decide to use that song, and that is instrumental to the storytelling, gagamitin namin iyon. We&#x27;re not going to shy away from using that,&quot; she said.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><div id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_2_Container"> <ivs-player id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_2" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-vid="1435191" data-ivs-floating="1"></ivs-player> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/iframe-parent.js"></script> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script> </div></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="~//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="~//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>Leading the cast of &quot;Ang Huling El Bimbo&quot; are Topper Fabregas, OJ Mariano, Tanya Manalang, Reb Atadero, Boo Gabunada, Gian Magdangal, and Jon Santos.</p><p>During the press conference, they were careful not to divulge details of the story -- only that the six male performers are halved to portray past- and present-day versions of three friends. Manalang, they teased, will portray a &quot;timeless&quot; character named Joy, after Eraserheads&#x27; &quot;Ligaya.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Ang Huling El Bimbo,&quot; Resorts World&#x27;s ninth theater production, will open on July 20.</p><p>Asked whether the band members are confirmed to watch one of the shows, Yulo said: &quot;Hopefully they do come on opening night. We do plan to invite them, and of course acknowledge them, because if it&#x27;s not for them, wala kami.&quot;</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ybxVCehoGc8?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="~//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="~//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><div><br/> </div>

<p>Set to delight Eraserheads fans starting July, Resorts World Manila's "Ang Huling El Bimbo" weaves together a cohesive narrative from some 20 hits of the iconic band, about friends who drifted apart and reunite two decades later.</p>

Set to delight Eraserheads fans starting July, Resorts World Manila's "Ang Huling El Bimbo" weaves together a cohesive narrative from some 20 hits of the iconic band, about friends who drifted apart and reunite two decades later.