Honk - The Ugly Duckling and the Beautiful Mother Duck

Honk - The Ugly Duckling now shows at the Meralco Theater weekends - till early September. Ticket prices range from P350 (Balcony-side) to P850 (Orchestra center). We watched the musical last Saturday with Adi. Well, we still like Joseph the Dreamer the best of all the Trumpets productions we've seen - but it still is a good idea to bring the kids to this show if your calendar will allow it.

Two out of four isn't bad. I had wanted to see Carlo Orosa as Ugly, Agot Isidro as Ida (the mother duck), Shiela Francisco as Grace/Lowbutt, and Noel Rayos as the Cat. On that Saturday, we got to see Franco Laurel (as Ugly), Agot, Shiela, and Tonipet Gaba as the Cat. The cast did pretty well - which isn't surprising anymore considering that Filipinos are really such performers.

The melodies of the songs were quite catchy (from time to time, I have - "We're off... on a wild goose chase..." playing in my head), the costumes colorful, and the set design interesting. What made the musical appeal to me, though, more than anything else, was the relationship between the Mother Duck and the Ugly Duckling. We only have to look to our own lives (either as kids or as mothers) to identify with the strong bond and unconditional love between Ida and Ugly. In fact, my favorite song in the musical (aside from the fun Warts and All that the Frog sings with Ugly and where he says that one day, "ugly will be in vogue") is when Agot, as Ida sings: "Every tear a mother cries is a dream that's washed away."

The musical reminds us too to believe in ourselves no matter how different others view us to be. We may all feel like Ugly Ducklings, once in awhile, but remember that someday - we will be swans...or "ugly will be in vogue" so don't fret.

So, if you want to remind yourself of the story of the Ugly Duckling, go watch Trumpets' Honk. Enjoy the show!