Ricky Davao returns to theater
Instead of pushing through with his plan to direct his first-ever full-length film this year, actor Ricky Davao pulled a surprise by returning to doing theater. This month, he goes up the stage with renewed energy via the original Filipino musical “Silver Lining Redux.”
During a recent media gathering to promote the show, it was revealed that Davao has likewise taken a pivotal behind-the-scenes role as line producer. He also said that producer Rockitwell Studios’ Jack Teotico is considering turning the story into an indie musical film.
“Silver Lining Redux” is a journey of rediscovery in two timelines—the 1970s and today. It is about understanding the struggles and conflicts of both periods through mirthful moments and potent drama.
Three friends
The story follows three high school friends, Leo (Davao), Anton (Jake Macapagal) and Raul (Raul Montesa), now in their senior years, who have gotten together to form a band for their golden anniversary homecoming. They’ve pulled together their wives and teenage kids to help them, but conflict arises when Leo suggests they create a musical about their lives instead.
Only a few of the younger generation know that Davao considers acting in theater his true passion. He has been in over 60 plays, the first being “Convent Bred,” a production in the 1980s directed by Maryo J. delos Reyes and produced by National Artist for Film Nora Aunor.
Davao played lead in Nonon Padilla’s “Felipe dela Casas” for Philippine Educational Theater Association (Peta). He also did “Lihis,” the Tagalog version of the British-American drama “Bent,” which starred Richard Gere.
“When I returned to doing movies, I felt people were already treating me differently. Whenever I was introduced, they would say, ‘This is Ricky Davao. He is from the theater.’ During the first staging of ‘Felipe delas Casas,’ Manila’s ‘who’s who’ from the industry were present,” he recalled. One director, whom Davao considers his idol, came up to him to say, “You were asked to do the impossible and you pulled it off.”
Make time for theater
Davao’s last stage play was “Baka Naman Hindi” in 2018. He was also part of the musical “Contra Mundum: Ang All-Star Concert ng ‘Ang Larawan’” in 2023.
Davao said he would always advise mainstream TV and film actors to make time to do theater productions. “The pay is not your usual, but the discipline you will learn from the experience will be all worth it. All great actors in the world came from theater,” said Davao, who is also a TV director. “It’s not all about money. Sometimes, it’s also about providing food for your soul.”
For the “Silver Lining Redux” restaging this November, celebrated theater veteran Jamie Wilson, who was its technical director during the first run, has agreed to alternate with Davao as Leo. Meanwhile, Macapagal has replaced Joel Nuñez as Anton.
The new edition will likewise feature new songs and a script that was “tightened” to make the story more relatable to the audience. “It’s the same, but not the same,” said director Maribel Legarda.
Aside from an interesting retro look at the baby boomers and flower power era of the ‘60s and the ’70s, the new edition of the musical evolves with the backdrop of today’s issues and other developments. Through all these challenges, hope and redemption will arise, said writer Liza Magtoto.
An interesting subplot in the story is the romance between the young Leo and his college classmate Julia (Krystal Brimner), something that Magtoto said has become “more developed” in the new edition. Also, Raul, the character, has become “more humanized” in order to provide more context to some of the important decisions he has to make.
The creative team took to heart the feedback it received from those who watched during the first run. This was why two new songs were added, especially to help in moving along the love story of Leo and Julia, according to musical director Vince Lim.
Most of the songs were retained, but all went through some level of changes to fit the new story. “Because we’ve already done it last year, we now have the opportunity to improve on it a little bit, whether on the instrumentation or the ensemble singing or the solos,” he added.
“Silver Lining Redux” will run on Nov. 8 to Nov. 17 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium at the RCBC Plaza in Makati City. Tickets are available via ticket2me.net/event/21933.
