By JOSEPH G. LARIOSA

(© 2011 Journal Group Link International)

C HICAGO (jGLi) – Fresh from directing the critically acclaimed romantic love story, “Rizal, Sweet Stranger, Untold Stories of Josephine Bracken, The Musical,” international award-winning playwright, Dr. Anton Juan, is back with the Chicago premiere of the play, “Bayan Bayanan (Town/To Town?), Letters From Home” at St. Scholastica Academy in Chicago, Illinois on Nov. 11, 12 and 13.

Touted as a modern masterpiece by another acclaimed Filipino playwright Bienvenido Noriega, Jr., “Bayan Bayanan” will attempt at a comedy that will parody some of the day-to-day travails of an immigrant’s life. It will get an added mix of “scenes and concepts” from Dr. Anton that had delighted multi-ethnic audiences in Athens, London, Geneva and Paris.

Taking the plum role is Cherie Gil, one of the Philippines more talented thespians in film and on stage, whose bloodline was descended from a family entertainers.

Anesthesiologist, Dr. Cleofe Guangko Casambre, who was also outstanding in “Rizal, Sweet Stranger” for her haunting melodies will provide musical galore in “Bayan Bayanan” that confronts the tender, painful contradictions of immigrant life caused by human frailties that are always transformed into a rich source of laughter.

REKINDLE MEMORIES BACK HOME

F ollowing the big wave of the migration of Filipino overseas workers the past decades, immigrant groups collected their stories to rekindle their memories of their life back home. This immersion of various experience among Filipino kababayans and the repeated recreations of their lives from different points of view became their tonic to battle boredom and difficulties of living in a far-away country and the painful loneliness they struggle to overcome or to deny by taking life with a grain of laughter and humor.

The play will not just draw inspirations from Filipino experiences. It will also relate from other immigrants so the play will have a universal appeal. It is a play about the dichotomy of flight, the quest for dreams, and the return to the nation’s memory and origin.

Bayan Bayanan is sponsored by the Migrant Care Foundation, Migrant Moon and Education Resources, Inc. (EDRI).

EDRI is a minority and women-owned corporation with a mission to provide multi-disciplinary approaches to education, professional development and diversity. Its vision is to serve as a catalyst for constructive competitiveness and meaningful cooperation among individuals and organizations.

TEDDY REY HEALING PLACE

P art of the proceeds will help build the Teddy Rey Healing Place, a multi-purpose complex, which is expected to be completed in early 2012. This building, which will be located in front of one of the Pediatric wards of the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) and adjacent to the Watchers’ Area, will house the lactation/breastfeeding room, play room, and a prayer/meditation room. 

This complex will answer the need for a facility where physicians can meet with families for consultations and counseling as well as a private area for patients and their families. 

The building will also serve as a facility for meetings, teaching activities and office area for the different subspecialties of the University of the Philippines PGH Pediatrics Department, enabling faculty and physicians to provide improved learning for students and residents, which will then translate to better service to underprivileged Filipinos coming from all over the country.

Aside from meeting the medical needs of the community, the Teddy Rey Healing Place will also provide an opportunity for cancer-stricken and chronically ill children to receive basic education while undergoing treatment, through the “Silahis ng Kalusugan” or the “School for the Chronically Ill” of which additional financial support is truly needed.

Tickets at St. Scholastica Academy Theater at 7416 North Ridge Blvd., Chicago are priced on Nov.  11 (Gala) -12 (Community Friendship Gala) at Main Floor at $100, $75 and $50; at Balcony, $30 and $20; Matinees on Nov. 12 and 13 (Main Floor) at $75, $50, $30; and (Balcony) at $20 and $10.

For inquiries for tickets, parties may call EDRI at 773.598.9880; Vicky Silvano, 773.848.1201; Via Times/CPR TV, 773.866.0811 and 773.677.2707 at www.edresourcesinc.com. # # #

Editor’s Note: To contact the author, please e-mail him at: (lariosa_jos@sbcglobal.net)