ANGELES CITY- Tickets for Pope Francis have been sold out in this city, way ahead of his visit to the Philippines in January next year.
The tickets, however, are not for his visit but for the maiden staging of “I Love Pope Francis, the Musical,” a local theater production that features amateur actors to be held at the Holy Angel University (HAU)) stadium here on Nov. 29.
Theatre director-composer Andy Alviz said “the musical’s world gala presentation on Dec. 12 at the 1,000-seater HAU auditorium is now fully booked.” Alviz collaborated with writer-lyricist Randy del Rosario under the aegis of Teatru Kapampangan for the staging of the musical revolving around Pope Francis who was named by Time Magazine as Person of the Year.
“Sales of tickets and reservations for the musical’s Jan. 10, 2015 run, also at the HAU auditorium, have likewise been brisk, prompting upbeat observations here that this home-grown production might just become a blockbuster not only in the Philippines but overseas, as well, because of its global appeal,” he said.
Alviz bared plans for the musical’s presentation at the Cultural Center of the Philippines next year, in cooperation with Rotary International. Bookings are now also being made for the musical’s run next year in Cebu, Iloilo and other key cities in the country and, hopefully, in London and finally Rome,” he said in last Friday’s weekly media forum jointly hosted by the Capampangan in Media, Inc., in partnership with the Social Security System, HAU and Clark Development Corp.
Alviz noted that “the new musical will feature 24 original songs and will delve on the life of the Pope, including his stint as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, from the point of view of a Filipino youth ministry.” The musical’s cast of 60 and its production staff is composed of home-grown talents of ArtiSta. Rita, Pampanga priests and lay artists, who are behind the organization of Teatru Kapampangan, he added.
He said part of the proceeds of the musical’s presentation will go to Teatru Kapampangan’s beneficiary – AeTahanan, a dormitory in Sta. Rita that houses Aetas taking up college studies Pope Francis, who rose to the papacy with the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, promptly caught international attention because of his humble mien, and his unorthodox approach in reaching out to the more than a billion Catholic faithful and others of different religious belief.
Earlier the highly-acclaimed musicals produced by the Alviz-Del Rosario team for the Pampango cultural group ArtiSta.Rita focused on domestic themes. Among them are Ima, Beauty Parlor, Perry the Musical, Ciniong and Tulaok: A Lenten Musical. Alviz honed his craft during his long stint as resident choreographer of the popular Miss Saigon, a musical dominated by Filipino talents like Lea Salonga.
