The Sound of Music at Resorts World Manila: Round 2

I was supposed to attend a blogger's event on the 12th of November, 2011, but when I heard that my lil brother sister sibling K was actually going to get out of the house and watch Sound of Music with my mother (which is a very rare occurrence), I knew I had to grab the chance to finally bond as siblings again. It had just been too long.

And, as Keigh Jalbuena of Delishoes Servings has taught me: family should always come first. (Yes, I never lived by this creed until recently. iSuck.)

Although I had already seen The Sound of Music during the press preview with Ana Gonzalez of The Fashionista Commuter, I was very excited to see it again. Why? Because my Tita Joanna - who plays Maria Rainer in the show - revealed to me nights before that a lot of changes had been made since the press preview.

A night at Resorts World with my mom, baby S, Tita Jo... and Tita Jo's cut-out. :p

Well, when Tita Jo said a lot of changes had been made, she was definitely right.

For starters, they have added two TV screens on the sides of the stage, so that even the people sitting at the very back can see the facial expressions of the actors onstage. How amazingly convenient is that? That means you can get a balcony seat for just Php1000 and still enjoy the SoM experience to the (uncle) max!

Did I mention that we had box seats this time around? As mega awesome as they were, though - because we could bring in food and didn't have to wait in line for the bathroom during the intermission since there was a private bathroom for the box seat people upstairs and coz we had soft reclining seats - it would have been impossible to enjoy the show without those screens.

Plus, during set changes, the screens also projected the orchestra, so that the audience stayed entertained at all times.

K and me in our box seats before the show

With our favorite sisters in the whole wide world

Also, they changed the blocking of the wedding scene because I was actually able to see Maria's beautiful wedding gown this time around (the first time, our view was obstructed by the nuns) - and it was absolutely stunning.

I was also happy to have seen other actors in some of the other roles, such as Robbie Guevara as Uncle Max and Lynn Sherman as Baroness Elsa Schraeder. I'm not going to draw any comparisons because they did their roles completely differently from their counterparts, but nobody left me disappointed. I still stand by what I said before: everybody was impeccably cast.

Another interesting thing to note is that, although Marvin Ong and Tanya Manalang were the same Rolf and Liesl that I watched last time, they did their "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" bit completely differently this time around. Just goes to show that the show is constantly full of surprises and is a whole new experience every time you see it. :) So, press preview people, watch na ulit! :p

Also - and I'm sorry to those who complain about the 'unprofessionalism' of my blog, but it has to be said: all of the kissing scenes in the show? Epic! The first time I watched, the kisses were just quick smacks on the lips and I was actually a lil worried about the actors' chemistry on-stage, but now? *stands up and applauds* Yup. They're more than believable now.

Anyway, as usual, photo-taking wasn't allowed in the theater, so here are some more backstage shots, courtesy of my mother instead:

JC Buendia was in the box with us, too.

See his summer 2012 collection pieces here. Haha. Plug!

...my mom's a bit of a paparazzi. :p

And here I am with my mommy. Do we look alike?

And, oh, look: I'm wearing an Anagon Collection necklace! REPRESENT talaga! Haha.

If you still haven't seen The Sound of Music and thought you wouldn't be able to anymore because most of the shows are sold out... proof here:

...then you're in luck coz they've extended until the end of December! Woot! Most of the performances are during the weekend, though (Fridays at 8pm and Saturdays and Sunday at 3pm and 8pm), but the prices are still the same: VIP (P2000), Premiere (P1700), Deluxe (P1300), and Balcony (P1000). Box seats are sadly not for sale. :(

Just FYI, Ana and I will be watching the evening show along with Giezelle Uy of Third World Fashion on Wednesday, December 7 - which also happens to be K's and Arnie's birthday :) - so if you wanna watch, that would be the best time to do so. Let me know if you'll be there, so we can meet! :)