Thursday, August 29, 2013

Dulaang UP Stages Jacobean Tragedy The Duchess of Malfi


This September, Dulaang UP continues its tradition of bringing world classics to the Filipino audience through the first major Philippine production of John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi. Dark and visceral, The Duchess of Malfi is widely held as the greatest of Webster’s works and the most gripping of the Jacobean tragedies. It has mesmerized and shocked audiences since it was first staged 400 years ago in 1613.

The Duchess of Malfi is renowned for producing what could probably be theatre’s most compelling female protagonist and two of its most twisted villains.
The play follows the story of a recently widowed duchess as she decides to go against her scheming brothers by secretly marrying her personal steward. The discovery of her deception engulfs everyone in a tumultuous and maddening whirlpool of envy, incest, greed, destruction, and death. The characters’ struggle for and against their desires forces us to ask ourselves, “How far will we go for pleasure?”

DUP’s production also features Ang Dukesa ng Malfi as translated into Filipino by Palanca awardee Allan Palileo. The play is adapted and directed by theater icon and DUP Founding Artistic Director Tony Mabesa, well known for his staging of world and Filipino classics. New York-based Obie award winner Clint Ramos and Eric Pineda collaborate for the set and costume design respectively; Choreography by Peter Alcedo, Jr., Lights design by Meliton Roxas, Jr., and Sound design by Jethro Joaquin.

The cast is headlined by some of theater’s biggest stars and supported by some of its most promising actors. Banaue Miclat, Liza Dino, and Adriana Agcaoili alternate as the defiant Duchess. Richard Cunanan, Neil Ryan Sese, and George de Jesus take turns playing the twisted Bosola. The Duchess’ malevolent twin brother, Ferdinand, is given life by Jacques Borlaza and Allan Palileo. The corrupt Cardinal is played by Menggie Cobarrubias and Brian Tibayan. The production also stars Carlo Tarobal, Dax Alejandro, Issa Litton, Ces Aldaba, and the Dulaang UP ensemble.

The Duchess of Malfi/Ang Dukesa ng Malfi runs September 11- 29, 2013 at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, Palma Hall, University of the Philippines Diliman. For sponsorship and ticket inquiries, please contact the Dulaang UP Office at 926-1349, 981-8500 local 2449 or 433-7840 and look for Ms. Camille Guevarra or Ms. Samanta Clarin.

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Sticker Happy with KakaoTalk


I've been forever a fan of stickers especially the cute ones.

When I was young, I would put them in my notebooks, bags, stationary and other stuff. And as time goes by, these stickers leveled up and become digital. These days, I sent stickers to my friends via mobile apps. 

The one that I am using right now is KakaoTalk,  a free mobile messenger application for smartphones with free text and free call features. It is available on iOS, Android, Bada OS, BlackBerry, Windows Phone and PC.

I want to share some of the impressive key features of KakaoTalk that I found very useful:

 (1) Group chat and multimedia sharing where users can create group chat rooms with an unlimited number of friends in KakaoTalk. KakaoTalk supports sharing of text, photos, videos, voice notes, contact information and schedules.

 (2) Free 1:1 and group voice call as KakaoTalk offers both 1:1 and group voice calls with as many as five speakers. Features including Talking Tom and Talking Ben voice filters add fun and excitement to voice chat. KakaoTalk is also the worlds’ first to provide free group calls in HD quality.

 (3) Animated/sound/still emoticons and themes: KakaoTalk is the first mobile instant messaging service to offer animated emoticons and stickers, which users can include in their chat bubbles. KakaoTalk offers tens of thousands of different emoticons, including localized digital content in Japan and Indonesia.

 (4) Security that encrypts all messages to ensure user privacy and all messages are deleted from the servers after a minimal length of time.

 (5) “Plus Friends” feature which is designed to allow users to select and receive content related to their favorite brands, companies, and stars. Connect with K-Pop stars such as CNBlue, Wonder Girls, Big Bang, Girls’ Generation and Super Junior.  This feature is available in the Philippines and other countries.  KakaoTalk is endorsed by Philippines’ pop princess Sarah Geronimo and Korea’s phenomenal boy band Big Bang.


Aside from the fact that KakaoTalk is free of charge, here are some other good news:
a. KakaoTalk is available on iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows, Bada and PC.
b. It allows users to send messages, pictures, video, URLs, contact details and schedule.
c. Also supports voice call and group call with as much as 5 people.
d. Currently has over 100 million users, maximum daily traffic is 5.2 billion messages (as of early this year).
e. Programs of KakaoTalk plans to eventually add Pinoy stickers.

For more information about KakaoTalk, visit its official Facebook fan page: www.facebook.com/kakaotalkph; Twitter account:  www.twitter.com/kakaotalkph and YouTube channel : www.youtube.com/kakaotalkph.