New Colors of Adarna

Opening its 38th theatre season, Dulaang UP presents Adarna, a Filipino literary work
which talks about the adventure of the three sons of Haring Fernando: namely, Don Pedro, Don
Diego, and Don Juan in search for the Ibong Adarna, the mystical bird that will cure the kings
illness.
The central lessons of Adarna include heroism, benevolence and love (Ibong Adarna).
The play starts with the journeys of Don Pedro, Don Diego, and Don Juan respectively. Ibong
Adarna is immediately brought to the palace of Berbanya to cure the king. However, the bird
with magical powers needs to be found again afterwards. Thus, the three princes go on another
journey. In Don Juans expedition, he faces trials and meets three beautiful princesses.
Overall, the play is successfully presented. The good points of the play overweigh its
minute loopholes. First, in spite of the fact that the story is already known by many, the
performance captures the audiences attention as if it were a newly-introduced story through the
comic approach. Since the audience consists mostly of teenagers, the play creates an audience
impact by witty conversations and playful actions. An example is the part when Don Juan is
trying to fight sleepiness: what he remembers to do is to cut the lemon instead of his arm.
However, there is a possibility that some of the main points of the original play be altered due to
the added humor. Successfully, Dulaang UP has managed to avoid changes in the conflicts of the
story. For instance, the sibling rivalry is perfectly depicted although the three brothers have light
moods and show childish actions. Furthermore, in Don Juans fighting scenes with the giant and
the serpent, humor and tension are balanced.

However, in making the production humorous results in over-exaggerating the character

of Don Diego. In the play, Don Diegos character seems to be inappropriate to that of a prince. A
prince is a nobleman characterized by his courage and masculinity; therefore, he must not act
weak and show a feminine personality. If the purpose of changing his personality just adds
humor, it may not be needed anymore. Besides this, the actors do well in the performance. Their
versatility is really commendable. Even though the actors play multiple roles, they are able to
distinguish the differences of each characters personality.
Technically speaking, the presentation generally satisfies the audiences taste. The lights,
together with the music, set the mood and emphasize the focus of every scene. The part when
Don Juan is left alone in the woods is enhanced by the spotlight and the melancholic music
background; the characters loneliness and pain are clearly exemplified. Also, the props
contribute to the success of the play. For example, the creative use of shadows is pleasing to the
eyes, especially in the running scenes. On the other hand, the dances and the transitions need to
be improved. The movements are not uniform thus, blocking other actors. The change of settings
is a little obvious because the light isnt dim enough, just like the part where the setting is
changed from the forest to the palace.
Stage performances of traditional literary works are not new, but Adarna has proven that
the Philippine literature can still be preserved in a fast-changing world; through creativity, old
works can be theatrically new. It serves as a signal for artists not to limit their capabilities and
keep on enriching works by innovating without exaggerating. Indeed, Adarna is a laudable
opening play for Dulaang UPs 38th theatre season.
Work Cited
Ibong Adarna. CE-Learning. C&E Publishing, 2010. Web. 6 Aug. 2013.