An Interview with Apat na Kaluluwa’s Playwright, Bea Abelinde
Bea Abelinde is a playwright, actress and theatre artist currently on her second year of theatre arts in UP Diliman under the Associate in Arts (Theatre) program. In March of 2021 Entablado UPD decided to stage her full-length play entitled, "Apat na Kaluluwa" as part of their ENTABLADO-3 festival which was the third installment to their “ENTABLADO” series.
With an astounding six directors for the virtual staged-play, it was a pleasure to have Miss Abelinde on a virtual interview to talk more about her script and how it was adapted onto stage. Or in this case, onto screen.
We opened with the question that’s on everyone’s mind: Ano yung “Apat na Kaluluwa”? To which Miss Abelinde responds, “Ayan 'lagi nilang tinatanong saakin. Ang naging proseso ko noong sinusulat ko siya, bale individually ko siyang iniisip. Sobrang fascinated kasi ako sa idea ng possibilites,” she explains as the play tells the story of four individuals living different lives but happen to all be interconnected by a prologue scene that keeps changing each time that it repeats itself.
Miss Bea Abelinde explains further that in the original draft there was more to the story than what was showcased in the ENTABLADO-3 adaptation. The aforementioned prologue scene of the story was much more laid out and clear, more than what was shown in the final version of the virtual-play. “Sa draft ko kasi na naisulat para mapagtagpi-tagpi siya,” Abelinde explains, “may isang situation na paulit-ulit na nangyayari: May isang phonecall para sa lalaki na karakter. May tatawag sa kanya pero paiba-iba yung taong tumatawag. At dahil din sa detalye na iyon naiiba yung takbo ng pag-uusap nila ng babaeng karakter.”
It turns out that in the original draft, in between each of the four stories (or apat na kaluluwa) the same phone call in the prologue repeats with a different person on the other line each time, subtly changing the sequence of events for that entire scene which will eventually lead up to the next story where both it and the prologue are hinted to be connected.
“So hindi na namin yon napakita kasi hindi siya naging effective na paulit-ulit yung nangyayari. Mahirap kasi siyang ipagtagpi-tagpi lalo na yung proseso na alam ng mga tao is pang-theatre. Pero ako, yun yung favorite draft na sinulat ko,” Miss Abelinde tells us.
Next we ask the playwright what her inspiration was in writing “Apat na Kaluluwa” to which she replied, “Natutuwa ako kapag tinatanong ako ng mga ganito e, pero dati kasi sinasama talaga siya sa mga festival namin noong senior highschool ako. Ang original set-up nitong play ay site-specific kasi yung porma ng school namin dati, isang building lang siya pero maraming room so parang 'Pupunta ka dito para mapanood mo yung first scene tapos lilipat ka sa iba para mapanood yung susunod na eksena.’ On-going siya. Sabi din kasi ng A.D. (artistic director) ko 'Sulat ka ng para sa isang site-specific na idea.' So naisip ko, 'Ano ba'ng maganda na site-specific?' At doon ko naisip yung mga Possibilities nga, doon ko pinasok.”
Abelinde clarifies that she still wants to stage the play in live theatre after mentioning how the script had gone through many cancellations in staging, and even on the ENTABLADO-3 run they had gone through some trouble that may have potentially cancelled the production once more.
Speaking of the ENTABLADO UPD run, next we ask: How were the directors in the process of the production? Reminding how there are six directors for this full-length play, all are current students of Theatre Arts in UP Diliman. Miss Abelinde then expresses that during that process, a lot from the original draft of the script had to be change for its adaptation to the online platform. Another challenge was that each of the directors had a different approach and attack on their assigned story in the script. “Iba-iba sila ng atake, mayroong pinagsama yung characters in the same space, tapos mayroong parang Zoom-type lang, mayron din yung paiba-iba yung angle.”
Though it was difficult, one of the lessons Abelinde learned as a playwright was to know when to give in to what the production wants and not only what she wants. As it is also a collaboration and in the end the changes in the script would be for the benefit of telling her story better for the platform. She mentions that she had also been the one to choose the directors for the play, so there was definitely a learning curve of giving and receiving trust. In return the show had proven to be one of the most successful and outstanding plays in this year’s ENTABLADO festival and possibly the entire ENTABLADO theatre anthology!
As we reach the end of the interview we get to one of the difficult questions: As the playwright, when did you think the adaptation of your play worked and did not work?
"Nagwork siya na individually sila nagsa-stand, yung apat na kaluluwa,” Abelinde answers, “Pero para saakin mayron pang igaganda yung pagkatagpi-tagpi sa kanila. Bukod din doon, isa pa ay sa hiwa-hiwalay na visions ng directors. Pero palagi kong kino-consider na unang beses pa lang naman itong pinalabas kaya hindi na saakin naging importante yon, ang mahalaga ay na-gets ng mga tao yung gustong sabihin at objectives ng apat na kaluluwa. At kahit papaano, kahit na kaluluwa sila nabuhay pa rin sila sa imagination ng mga tao. Nagkaroon sila ng boses, naging tunay silang mga tao.”
She tells us that she also had a conversation about this with her college batchmates which were the same people building the ENTABLADO-3 festival, about how they should create something for stage before they graduate from being Associate in Arts (Theater) or A.A.T. students and jump into B.A. (Bachelor of the Arts).
Finally we could not resist asking Miss Abelinde for her fans, what music or song does she listen to, to get in the drive of writing and creating? “‘Lover, Please Stay’ by Nothing but Thieves,” she answers.
If you have not yet seen the full-length play, “Apat na Kaluluwa” written by Bea Abelinde go check it out on https://fb.watch/59-zWtrxWz/ First shown on March 28, 2021 under ENTABLADO UPD’s “ENTABLADO-3” festival. We would like to thank Miss Bea Abelinde again for sitting down with EXGO REV for an online interview, and we would also like to congratulate everyone who worked on the production. From the actors, creative team and backstage team. Outstanding performance!
“Apat na Kaluluwa” was written by Bea Abelinde
Directed by Allelie Anne Bobis, Ravelyn Dar Juan, Chloe Reyes, AJ Benoza, Danica Lane Augustin and Quinea Babas.
Under ENTABLADO UPD’s “ENTABLADO-3” Festival