I have been a fan of ‘Once on this Island’ since I first heard the soundtrack sometime in the early 90s. The musical, by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty is an adaptation of the 1985 novel ‘My Love, My Love’ or ‘The Peasant Girl’ by Rosa Guy, which is a reimagining of the fairy tale The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen but set in the Caribbean. The musical has won the Laurence Olivier award at the West End in 1995 and the Tony for Best Revival in 2018. The play, almost completely sung-through, boasts incredible music by a large array of loveable characters and a love story that can be quite problematic in the current time but is very much a throwback to the love story depicted in The Little Mermaid.

9 Works Theatrical’s production, on the direction of Robbie Guevarra, does an interesting turn on the musical emphasizing the craziness of the dated love story of the play. ‘Once on this Island’ is set in an island in the Caribbean. In the midst of a huge storm, the villagers tell a story about Ti Moune to calm a child. The story goes that Ti Moune was an orphan that the four gods – Asaka, Agwe, Erzulie, and Papa Ge – saved so that she can teach the island a lesson. The island is split into two – the peasants and the Grand Homme – and these two worlds never meet. Except Ti Moune longs for bigger things, having been told that the gods have saved her for something special. She sets her eyes on a Grand Homme, Daniel, who drives through the island in his Mercedes Benz. Having fallen in love with the young man, Ti Moune proclaims that she will marry him, and the gods laugh at her bravado. But Erzulie, the goddess of love, insists that love is stronger than the earth, water, and death, the domain of Asaka, Agwe, and Papa Ge. The gods then decide to use Ti Moune and Daniel to test Erzulie’s proposition: that love is stronger than death.

The play is Ti Moune’s journey from her village to the land of the Grand Homme to be able to marry Daniel and prove the power of love. Back in the 90s, the very ‘Little Mermaid’-ish storyline was innocent and idealistic. But in today’s sensibiliites it is a little foolish, if not outright mental. Guevarra leans into this, turning Ti Moune’s longing and passion into something rash and delirious. When Ti Moune and Daniel first meet, Daniel crashes his car during the rain and Ti Moune nurses him back to health. She sings a song about her love for him and Guevarra highlights this by doing a pretty neat trick by letting his Daniel appear on another part of the stage to sing their love duet despite the fact that the audience was left to believe that Daniel was on the bed with TI Moune when the scene starts. Guevarra uses his talented ensemble in multiple ways to weave his players in and out of scenes that keeps the energy on stage strong and vibrant. 

He also directs the cast to play up the storytelling aspect of the play. Since the story is told through the villagers, when they perform the scenes of the Ti Moune story, there is a child-like wonder to the performances that keeps the play buoyant despite such themes as death and class division. Coming up to match this direction is its very abled cast with standout performances by Angela Ken (in the show I saw, Thea Astley alternates) as Ti Moune, Lorenz Martinez as Papa Ge, Garret Bolden as Agwe, Lani Ligot as Mama Euralie, Raul Montesa (for the show I saw, Noel Rayos alternate), and Krystal Kane (alternate Shanaia Gomez) as Andrea.

Martinez is always reliable, but his Papa Ge is a lot more human than a previous show I saw 20 years ago and from clips I’ve caught on the internet. It’s not a caricature of a “sly demon” as his intro to the play suggests but a textured portrayal that brings in an air of freshness. Bolden has an impressive stage presence and has a magnificent voice that made his solo song ‘Rain’ a showstopper in the show I caught. For the little Andrea gets to do in the play, Kane was so memorable and was able to add a new layer to Andrea, not pushing her into the level of an antagonist (as some productions do). The scene stealers of the show, though, belong to Ligot and Montesa, who play the parents of Ti Moune. Their singing is imbued with so much heart and passion that they easily served as the show’s emotional anchor. 

Ken is a wonderful discovery. She has spunk and presence and is unafraid to show the deliriousness of Ti Moune’s love for Daniel. The girl can sing, and she can demand for her spotlight on that stage, even when it is completely filled by that cast. I discovered this is still her first lead role and you can see the inexperience, sometimes relying on facial expressions that feel rehearsed or practiced but what she lacks in experience, she makes up for charisma and bravado. She’s an amazing talent and I can’t wait to see her grow.

Mio Infante’s set is both beautifully designed but can also create staging limitations for the production. There are curtains draped right above the center in a circle with strips of fabric falling down making it look like a gorgeous ethereal jellyfish when the lights hit it at a particular way and the stage itself has a thin loop that encircles the center. Actors can jump on the loop that is tilted towards the audience. It’s interesting because it allows the characters to go in and out of the center to direct us to the action, but it can also create an upper and lower level for certain scenes where height and leverage can come into play. Unfortunately, when the action is focused right in the middle, the circle can become limiting and when the whole ensemble is dancing together, it can sometimes feel too cluttered or busy. It makes the play feel smaller than it is.

But the musical direction of Daniel Bartolome keeps the score intact but adds extra percussion flourishes in certain songs – the dance-oriented ones, specifically – that adds an extra kick to the already-wonderful music of Stephen Flaherty. The singing by this ensemble is exceptional and so if the story isn’t to your liking, you can just enjoy the beautiful music.

There’s a lot to love in this beloved staging of the classic musical ‘Once on this Island.’ I appreciate the modern approaches it takes on some parts of the book that can feel dated, but it also manages to highlight the play’s stronger themes as it tackles class discrimination. This staging also manages to push a message that we make our own choices, regardless of what the gods (or whatever metaphor you decide the gods are representative of) has in store for you. For that alone, it’s reason why we must keep telling this story.

My Rating:

ONCE ON THIS ISLAND is running until September 29 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati. For ticket details, visit Ticket2Me.