Classic musicale brings out the romance at Burnham Park

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – The public will be treated to a new kind of entertainment on February 14 with the musical Phantom of the Opera on the Lake at the Burnham Park here. Billed as Phantom on the Lake, the theatrical excerpts of the French classic musical, will be the first to be performed on Burnham Lake. It will also be the first stage performance on a lake in the Philippines, according to director-actor Chinggoy Alonzo, Local artists Glen Gaerlan and lawyer Kay Balajadia are among the top performers playing cameo and secondary lead roles, with Baguio-bred Alonzo on the title role, Christine Allado and Jonathan Badon playing the lead roles. The Broadway opera is part of the month-long Panagbenga Flower Festival 2009 celebrations. Before the 7 p.m. musical, a fluvial parade at Burnham Lake will be staged in the morning to complete a whole-day family treat on Valentine’s Day. Gaerlan, Balajadia and Badon are alumni of the UP Concert Chorus. Allado is a theater performer, while Alonzo is a seasoned film and theater talent. Speaking before the media on Monday, lead actress Allado said Phantom is of beautiful music, romance and love. “Please watch it at Burnham Lake and experience romance and love," she said, adding she is excited to do the lake concert, which she foresees to be setting the bar higher. Phantom of the Opera, a classic theatrical rendition by Andrew Lloyd Webber from the French original Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux, talks of a new opera singer Christine (Allado) taught and trained by an “angel," the Phantom (Alonzo) and later becomes a diva, upstaging an older diva Carlotta (Balajadia). In a twist, a love triangle emerges with the lead male role Raoul (Badon) pursues the new diva, whose trainer also falls for her. Enjoyed by audiences around the globe, The Phantom of the Opera is the most successful musical in history. This Broadway musical features the songs All I Ask of You, The Music of the Night, The Point of No Return, Think of Me, Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again, and many more. Villa Cordillera has confirmed it is setting up coffee tables a la European Café by the lake. Other Baguio-based restaurateurs might follow suit, said 2009 Flower Festival chairperson Anthony de Leon, Baguio Country Club general manager, during the press conference that announced the staging of the Phantom in the Lake Monday morning. The public may bring portable chairs, picnic mats or tents or simply sit on the grass, de Leon said as he anticipated a large crowd by the lake on February 14. - GMANews.TV