“El Sacramento Prohibido” Reaction Paper Essay

Doctrines, traditions, conventions, governing, taboos, these are most elements that are part of the e preciseday lives of tidy sum in the Philippine society. Usually when these are the topics or subjects, sleep withs are comm alone entailed. These are the central themes of Lester Andradas thesis production which he previewed pull through March 28, 2014 at the NCAS Alumni Plaza, or the garden area that looks like a small courtyard inside the NCAS building. El Sacramento Prohibido or the forbid Sacrament is a satirical production which utilized Absurdism and perhaps a slight hint of the stylings of the Theatre of Cruelty.The story of El Sacramento Prohibido (ESP) revolves slightly Dante, a upstart priest fresh out of the seminary who was assigned to the church building at his homet cause to be its new kura or reverend. Though he brandishes the aura of a straightforward virtuous young man, he bears a secret. Fr. Dante is homosexual, a event that is controversial and technicall y against Christian doctrine. Dante was sent to a seminary in Manila by his parents who were both power hungry politicians who saw Dante only as a casualty that whitethorn tarnish their names. But steady before leaving for the seminary, Dante has a lover, Abel, who was, during Dantes absence, executed by Fr. Loreto, an gray-haired priest residing in San Idelfonso. Upon returning, Dante was depended to by a young communion table server named Lermo. He was a thoughtful male child, who was the first to discover Dantes secret during one of Dantes moments of reminiscence when he accidentally kissed the boy while thinking of Abel whose whereabouts he has yet to find out. Eventually he shall hunch everything that happened in his hometown, all the misdeeds done by the church, by his own parents, and ultimately, the murder of his lover. Upon finding out the truth, Dante wasconsumed by the darkness, and in the end he kills everyone including himself. In the afterlife, Dante is seen with Abel, together peacefully and happily in paradise.ESP has creatively utilized the production elements in the somewhat intimate stackting. First glum would be the set and props. ESP was the first production that I set about seen using the garden area in NCAS, and itwas a very unmatched experience, though a setback of it may be that the earreach aptitude is very limited, and the listening area itself is non leveled since the back part of the audition area is lower than the front, meaning those at the back would have a hard prison term seeing anything. My favorite thing about the set is how they were able to maximize the structure of the NCAS building itself. The scenes where the undead were pounding on the windows of the NCAS staircase, it was very memorable and awesome. On the props, they were creative but not as high-fidelity (visually) as the actual church paraphernalia like the chalice, and the placement of the podium. The costumes and constitution of the actors were n ice, the prosthetics were impressive but lavatory still maybe stepped up a notch. The music was creepy, and therefore appropriate. I found it remarkable the moments of live choral music performed by the former(a) actors (the parts when Herzl was at the back of the audience and she was chanting), very beautiful. The lights could be improved especially the timing of when to turn the lights on or off, but the lights in general had been able to establish the way of the scenes alongside the music. The film component was impressively done in name of cinematography. The technical aspects of the production can still be improved, like with the projector, and the synchronization of the lights and sounds with the scene.The thing that makes me think of many things about ESP is the text itself. I grew up in a very religious environment. I know how many things worked, why some things are done, what some things meant, since these things were taught to me since I was a child. I found it hard no t to comment on some of the technical aspects of the production, like the props (as I mentioned earlier) and also the text, on what the actors were saying. I really cannot blame the playwright since I heard that he was not a Catholic. I think what the playwright intended to depict is the un wanted characteristics and actions of the Church and how other people see it, and with that kind of perspective I think it haddone that part well.Though looking at it in retrospect, I think that perhaps had it been too accurate, it may be more offensive especially if they dont know how to look at things with an artistic perspective, or just with an open mind. The text had tackled many issues in the Philippinesociety. Theres the case of the LGBT, where they are seen as hateful in society as portrayed by how Fr. Loreto and Mr. & Mrs. Barrameda had shunned Dante because of his homosexuality. Another issue is with the church, or I should rather say the church practitioners, which had done wrongs si nce the time of the Spanish colonization when they used the word of God to exploit and motor advantage of the people, as depicted by how Fr. Loreto always demands payments for sermons and other things that shouldnt even be given a price. This next one may not be that much of an issue but the harm that can be brought about by gossip, which was depicted by the three ladies who attend mass and then afterwards talk bad about other people. The last one I shall point at is the dirty politics which is rampant in the Philippines. It was depicted by Dantes parents who buy votes in a desperate attempt to hold on to power. They even wanted to utilize Dantes influence as a priest in order to make the people vote for them.The part which disappointed me was the fact that Dante had given in to the darkness, and also the fact that he killed Lermo, the innocent young boy who was always there to support him. But anyways, as a production, I think El Sacramento Prohibido is good and overall an sweet experience especially during the times when they break the fourth wall (well, at least for me, Im okay with it), and also it wants to tell the audience not just a story but also a message of awareness about what is happening in society nowadays.