CEBU, PHILIPPINES — Once we depart from this world, how do we want to be remembered by the people who remain? That’s the question that 2TinCans Philippines Inc. explores in its latest production, “The Second Eulogy,” which took place last April 18 and 19.
Attendees at The Kabilin Center were greeted by ushers, asked to sign their names in a guest book, and given pamphlets as if they were attending the wake of a man they hadn’t met.
His name was Marco, a Cebuano in Manila whose death implied he had taken his own life. As five characters grieve, their differing perceptions of him make them question whether they truly knew the man they lost.
Rafael (played by Vince Lopez) heavily admires his brother to a fault. Teresa (Charlene Virlouvet), a relative, has loved Marco as her own son but harbors conflicting feelings about his absence before his death. Joan (Rae Basiga), a once-rival-turned-best friend, is left with more questions than answers after his death.
From Marco’s life in Manila, two people flew to Cebu to attend his wake. Eli (Grant Bacaltos), a stranger who owes Marco his life, grows frustrated with how the others perceive his “hero” differently. Meanwhile, Frank (Dan Clever Gigantone) may be the one closest to knowing who the real Marco was.
No stand-in actor is playing Marco; instead, the face in his wake photo is an amalgamation of Rafael, Teresa, and the play’s director and playwright, Mario Alcoriza.
“This story is really not about Marco,” Alcoriza told The FREEMAN after the play. “It’s about who he represents, how his loss affected those grieving him, and who he was to them.”
There’s another character who doesn’t have any lines but whose presence is deeply felt among the actors: the audience, who become witnesses to this wake and the tensions between characters with their conflicting views of Marco.
The black box theater-like setup at The Kabilin Center complements the story’s intimacy, allowing the audience to feel physically and emotionally immersed in it.
“This is my favorite kind of theater,” said Virlouvet during the post-show Q&A. “It’s quite immersive because the audience is also part of the performance. The fact that you’re in this with us, breathing together, is the most fulfilling thing for me as an actor. I can feel every single one of you. We can feel your energy, and it fuels us as actors.”
“The Second Eulogy” marks Alcoriza’s debut as a director and playwright. A Zamboangueño, Cebu-based thespian, he has been active in the theater scene for three years.
Alcoriza said he was inspired by the wakes he attended. “I would hear people give their eulogies, and I’d wonder how some would clean them up as a way to grieve better and make death easier to handle for ourselves. I became curious about how much truth there is in a eulogy and what remains unsaid.”
As the characters grapple with their own perceptions of Marco and confront how others remember him, the play does not provide a clear resolution. Instead, it deconstructs the varied and often conflicting emotions that come with grief, showing how each person holds a different version of the one they have lost.
“I intended not to have a full resolution in the story because in reality, we don’t have that closure. It’s the way it is. We have to deal with it in our grief and how we cope with our loss,” Alcoriza added.
The story evolved during rehearsals as the cast built their characters, developing backstories and personal connections to Marco.
“My personal process when reading a script for the first time is to understand the story from the audience’s perspective because I want to take note of their reactions as an actor. From there, we start building the character,” Virlouvet explained.
She noted that the cast benefited from having the playwright present during rehearsals, which helped them better understand the author’s intentions.
“We are so grateful that our director is also our playwright, so he helped us with the backstory. We are so lucky because this is not always the case when we are given scripts written by other people,” Virlouvet said, noting that 2TinCans’ previous productions were adaptations such as “Steel Magnolias” and “Love, Loss, and What I Wore.”
Alcoriza is among the eight directors being trained under 2TinCans’ “Kulukabildo II: Stories in Direct Light” theater series, which aims to stage a socially relevant play each month for eight months. While directors were given previously staged material to work with, Alcoriza chose to write an original play.
“As I was looking for material, nothing resonated with me. That’s when I thought of a play about wakes and differing truths, and developed it from there,” he said. “Since I am expanding my skills in theater, why not step outside my comfort zone and create my own story?”
With the full support of 2TinCans’ artistic director, Sarah Mae Enclona-Henderson, the troupe backed Alcoriza’s vision.
“We wanted to be true to what the director wants and how they want to tackle their material. We are focused on creation, and these are the kinds of stories we want to offer to our Cebuano audience,” she said.
Enclona-Henderson said the ongoing theater series is an opportunity for people in the theater scene here to hone their skills in directing.
“People have to wait for opportunities to direct their own play. If there are none, how can we apply what we’ve learned?” she said. “There are so many talented directors and playwrights in the making who don’t usually get opportunities like this, so why not create one ourselves?”
She also emphasized the group’s goal of making theater-going a habit among Cebuanos through “Kulukabildo II.”
“We would like to have a consistent offering here in Cebu — not just to develop our actors and directors, but also our audience. There needs to be something people can look forward to and mark on their calendars every month. This can only happen if we are consistent in staging these plays,” she added.
As teased in pamphlets given to audience members, the next play in 2TinCan’s “Kulukabildo II” series is “Ang Kawatan,” directed by Vanessa Fe. It follows a Cebuano author whose book launch for his successful debut novel is disrupted by a young actress he once knew.
| Witten by JANUAR JUNIOR AGUJA / VAB
