By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Troy Apostol has an armful of handmade suitcases that
will be assembled into the play's stage props. They were made
to be nested into each other and carried on the plane as baggage
by the performers.
‘peregriNasyon’
By Cynthia Oi
packs for the
Philippines
Star BulletinWhen Kumu Kahua's international touring production of "peregriNasyon" heads for the Philippines next month, the set will be carried on the airplane in 15 nesting suitcases by the play's 15-member company.
The suitcases -- 70 of them that fit into 15 -- compose the set for the play and will also carry props and some of the costumes.
Playwright and director Chris Millado said the set designer, Joseph Dodd, reasoned that because passengers on the airplane are allowed two pieces of check-in luggage, "everybody will carry one suitcase of the set and one suitcase for themselves."
The suitcases symbolize the central theme of the play, which tells the story of Filipino migration in the 1930s through two brothers, one who packs his bags and leaves the Philippines to seek his fortune in the United States, and one who remains in the American-occupied country.
Despite their physical separation, Simeon, who leaves, and Esteban, who stays, both battle exploitation and racism. Millado uses Filipino martial arts and other devices to communicate the similarity of the brothers' geographically diverse experiences.
Dodd, a scenic design professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, said he had collected 65 used suitcases for the set, but found they would not fit into each other. So he built new ones that would.
"We'll use them literally for our own migration," he said.
Millado, 37, who teaches at the University of Hawaii, was born in the Philippines and has a degree in performance studies from New York University. He came to Hawaii about three years ago and stayed, he said, because of "the large Filipino population -- and the food."
"Adobo is available everywhere in Hawaii," he said.
Kumu Kahua first presented his play in 1996; and it was produced off-Broadway last summer, Millado said. He'll be in New York in February to stage the play again.
Meanwhile, "peregriNasyon" will tour the Philippines next month.
Millado said he is thrilled to take the production there, "to bring back the stories." He said many Filipinos migrated to the United States in the 1930s, never to be heard from again.
By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Dwayne Dunlao, Harold Bayang, Maestro Joey del Mar,
Maestro Mike del Mar, MJ Gonzalvo and Troy Apostol. They
will be in the "Ladrones" scenes in the Filipino play "peregriNayson."
"This will reconcile what took place with people when they went away," he said.Some of the cast members are descendants of Filipinos who left their homelands. For many, the trip will be their first exposure to their ancestral culture.
"They are nervous, anxious about what they will encounter," he said. Many don't speak the language, except for phrases they learned as part of the script. "Everyone who sees the play will then presume that they speak the language, so there is some anxiety."
Cultural differences also are a concern. "They grew up in America, adopted American ways. Their modes of behavior might be frowned upon," he said.
Still, he is sure connections will be made.
As for suitcases, they've been the significant portion of the set since the play was first staged. But for the tour, the real ones would have been too cumbersome to transport.
Dodd said the plywood suitcases he built are covered with maps from the Rand-McNally store, which sold them to him for half price. He coated them with a tinted stain to give them an antique look.
The suitcases have passed airline muster, at least for interisland travel.
"We took them to Kauai for the show there and it was no problem," Dodd said.
"peregriNasyon" will be presented at 2 and 7 p.m. Nov. 21 at Leeward Community College. The latter performance will be a benefit gala to raise money for the Philippines trip and, Millado said, as "a send-off from the community."
He noted many groups and performers come from the Philippines to put on shows in Hawaii.
"This time, we'll bring a piece of Hawaii there."
A play by Chris Millado: peregriNasyon
When: 2 and 7 p.m. Nov. 21
