Itatanghal ang all-original Filipino musical na Pilato sa Abril 4-13, 2025 sa PETA Theater Center sa New Manila, Quezon City.
Pangungunahan ito nina Jerome Ferguson bilang Poncio Pilato, Onyl Torres bilang historiographer na si Josepo, Jeremy Manite bilang high priest na si Caiaphas, at Noel Rayos bilang Hesus.
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Sa title pa lang, maliwanag na hindi kay Hesus nakasentro ang musical na Pilato…
“O, di ba? Yun pa lang, umpisa pa lang, ano!” natatawang sabi ng veteran theater actor na si Noel sa eksklusibong panayam ng PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) noong Pebrero 1, 2025, sa The Corner Studio sa J&T Building, Magsaysay Blvd., Sta. Mesa, Manila.
“We’ve already seen this over and over — Jesus, the Passion story. Ang Pagpapahirap, Pagpapakasakit at Kamatayan ng ating Panginoong Hesukristo, ganyan-ganyan.
“Iba naman! So if you’re gonna do Stations of the Cross this year, or you’re gonna do Visita Iglesia, why not sneak in up late?
“Since you’re here, wala kang pasok, mainit ang panahon, malamig sa loob ng PETA Theater Center.
“If nothing else. Do shake it up. Shake it up! What have you got to lose? Nothing. Mura lang naman ang tiket namin. He! He!
“Let’s shake it up. Shake up our ‘faith.’ It’s an interesting question, e. Someone asked, ‘What about the non-believers’?
“Are you so sure everyone here in this cast or creative team is a believer? I wouldn’t be too sure.
“We’re here to tell the story and provoke thought. So as I said, if we do that, then we’ve succeeded.”
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PILATO, NOT A PASSION PLAY
Ayon mismo sa writer-director na si Eldrin Veloso, ang Pilato ay hindi senakulo.
Sinegundahan iyon ng musical director na si Pauline Arejola, maging ng composer na si Yanni Robeniol.
"Hindi relihiyoso ang palabas. Hindi rin siya history. Not neccesarily history,” sambit ni Noel.
Pero may pagka-political?
“Everything is politics, don’t you think? Whoever has the majority gets their way, di ba?” pagmamatwid ni Noel.
“It’s so difficult. Everyone wants to be safe. Kasi that’s the only way to survive, e. We go with who’s popular, who’s in the majority.
“Why not stand for Truth? Because in the end, if the pandemic has taught us anything, that’s the only thing that matters.
“Just be true to yourself. Do what matters.”
Masisiguro ba niya na ang musical na Pilato ay hindi sacrilegeous?
“What is sacrilege, di ba? It’s contrary to doctrine and… when are we gonna be punished for that?
“When we’re facing God, right? Then we can say to the Lord, if we believe in the Lord, if we believe in the law…
“Kasi po, iyan ang sa pagkakaakala ko, e, to the best of my knowledge at the time is, was the Truth and good.
“So Lord, patawarin Niyo na ako kung hindi pala, mali pala. So, how can you lose, right? Ha! Ha! Ha!”
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WHAT IS THE REAL TRUTH?
Itinitibok ng Pilato musical — in an era where misinformation spreads faster than light and truth seems to wear many faces, the question asked over 2,000 years ago by one of the most divisive persons in history still reverberates with haunting relevance, “Ano ba ang katotohanan?”
Sang-ayon ba siya sa mensaheng nais ihatid ng palabas? May questions ba siya?
“The answer is still a question,” napangiting tugon ni Noel.
“So the purpose is to make you answer it for yourselves. Ano ba ang katotohanan?
“In this age of post-truth world, isn’t it insane? Now it’s the narrative that matters; it’s not what really happened.
“People care less about, you know, I mean, [Donald] Trump winning in the States, the second term after what happened with COVID and everything.
“Here, we have our political dynasties. Midterms are coming up, are we gonna vote for the same thing?
“Or change, can we afford to vote for change? Because if we do, won’t institutions fall apart?
“Is corruption really necessary? Ingrained in our society because nothing works.
“Are Pinoys really so dependent on what we’re used to doing for generations and generations?
“What happens kaya if we don’t sell our vote? What will happen? Ha! Ha! Ha!”
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NOEL RAYOS ON PLAYING JESUS FOR THE SECOND TIME
Mas gusto ba niyang naibigay sa kanya ang supporting role na Hesus kesa sa pangunahing papel na Pilato?
“I was approached to audition when Pilato was already cast. Pahabol ako, e. I was the last person cast,” pagsisiwalat ni Noel.
Crucial siyempre ang role na Hesus sa ganitong pagtatanghal.
“I try not to think about it that way. Artista lang po. How hard would it be, just memorize your lines,” lahad ni Noel.
“Which is I think what’s awesome about it because kaya kami kumakanta, it’s an abstraction of reality. It’s not reality itself.
“Kesa sabihin mong, ‘Halika, sama ka, doon tayo sa love place,’ or whatever. You just say it, ‘Iniibig kita…’ Right away it becomes smoother…
“Sana, bago tayo mag-draw conclusions, bigyan natin ng chance. Doon muna tayo, pag-isipan natin.
“And then we draw our own conclusions, answer the questions for yourselves.”
Sa mahigit 100 professional theater productions na nilahukan niya, fist time ba niyang gumanap na Hesus?
“Second time. Wayback for Dulaang UP, my one and only play for Dulaang UP,” pagbabalik-tanaw ni Noel.
“Pa-graduate na ako nun, e, under Anton Juan. Ang Paglalakbay ni Sisa: Isang Noh sa Laguna. 1995.
“So that was the last time na nakabahag ako na puti. He! He!”
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HESUS 1995 VS HESUS 2025
Ano ang kaibahan ng pagganap niyang Hesus noong 1995, sa pagiging Hesus sa Pilato musical ngayong 2025?
“Ahhh! You will find out! Ha! Ha! Ha! Kasi at that time, I watched M. Butterfly of RS Francisco as college student,” wika ni Noel.
“Tapos nag-produce siya, mayaman na siya. So 30 years later, prinodyus niya. O, di ang ganda pa rin niya, di ba?
“Ang ganda pa rin niya. Ang sexy pa rin niya. Many things happened, e.
“When I was a kid, I read the Bible cover to cover before. I was 10. I just wanted to be a good Christian.
“Morbid fantasy ko noon, I’ll tell you na lang in private. He! He! He! He! So mas in the book tayo, kasi bata pa tayo noon, e. Ngayon, matanda na tayo.”
Mas mature, mas may wisdom.
“You view things a little differently. Pero ngayon, don’t you think you’re happier that you’re older?” saad ni Noel.
“Kasi alam mong malalampasan mo kahit na ano, e. In the end, nothing is beyond solving.
“You just wanna keep going. Find a good reason to get up out of bed and make the most of your day.
“And before you know it, that one day becomes two days, becomes three days, becomes four years of a pandemic, and it’s finished.
“And now second life na nating lahat ito.”
Better Hesus siya this time sa Pilato musical?
“Parang doktor na ganun na lang, mas may konting detachment ako,” saad ni Noel.
“Kasi dati, may takot pa. ‘Baka mali, baka magkamali.’ Ngayon wala na po, e. Kasi, wala nang mawawala sa atin. Kasi second life na natin ito, e.
“Huwag na tayong matakot. Basta arte lang tayo, kanta lang.”
Trivia: Ang pangalang Noel ay nangangahulugan ng Pasko, Christmas, araw ng pagsilang ni Hesus.
Nag-ugat ito sa Latin verb na “nasci,” na ang kahulugan ay “to be born.” Ipanganak, isilang, iluwal.
Ang world premiere ng Pilato ay sa Abril 4, Biyernes ng 8:00 P.M.
Itatanghal ito kapagkuwan sa Abril 5, 6, 11, 12, at 13 ng 3:00 PM at 8:00 PM sa PETA Theater Center.
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