Entertainment

Review by Rasha Madkour / The Associated Press A new book written by a schoolteacher has a simple, yet compelling message for parents: Back off. 

By Mark Kennedy / The Associated Press New York—Jose Llana got his first professional acting gig by trying on his dream role: professional actor. The talented Filipino-American singer and performer was 19 when he skipped class to attend an Equity audition for the 1996 Broadway revival of The King and I, despite not owning a union card. Llana waited until a fellow actor didn’t show up for his time slot. “I looked around …

By Teresa Cerojano / The Associated Press The Filipino-American co-director of the box-office hit Inside Out says it’s a dream come true for him to be sharing with Filipinos the animated film he helped create.

Review by Jocelyn Noveck / The Associated Press I’ll admit it: About an hour into Fantastic Four, the inexplicably plodding and dreary new attempt to adapt the beloved Marvel story, I started thinking about Ethan Hunt from Mission: Impossible.

After 39 years, 180 productions, numerous artists and countless possibilities, Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas (Dulaang UP or DUP) is all set to begin its 40th season with the theme “20/20 Vision: Clarity. Originality. Perspective.” With Dexter M. Santos as the theater company’s new artistic director, this season’s line-up puts premium on strengthening the DUP brand and continuing its legacy. The …

Review by Jocelyn Noveck / The Associated Press There’s some interesting talk in the cleverly satisfying script of Mission: Impossible—Rogue Nation about the element of luck. As in: How much is luck a factor in the success of Ethan Hunt and his Impossible Missions Force (IMF) cohorts? After all, in the last movie they merely saved us from a nuclear holocaust. Was it talent, …

Review by Alvin I. Dacanay There’s a scene in Red Turnip Theater’s elegant, intellectually engaging production of Moisés Kaufman’s 33 Variations that highlights one of its central themes. In it, the main character, musicologist Katherine Brandt (Shamaine Centenera-Buencamino), discusses transfiguration—not of Christ, she quickly clarifies—as transforming something ordinary into something extraordinary, as improving a banal work and making it sublime. In …

By Ma. Cristina C. Arayata / Philippines News Agency It was that time of the year again when legislators, their wives and other government officials walked the red carpet to listen to President Benigno Aquino III’s State of the Nation Address (Sona)—his last—last Monday. Who do you think was the most fashionable?

The Writer’s Bloc, an independent group of emerging and established playwrights headed by acclaimed dramatist Rody Vera, is inviting interested parties to attend its regular reading sessions of new plays every other Sunday afternoon, starting August 9.

Looking for the ideal, hassle-free option for your lunch break or luncheon meeting? Eastwood Richmonde Hotel’s (ERH) The Lounge offers that to you. Keeping the needs of busy business people in mind, The Lounge’s Executive Meal was created to be uncomplicated, delectable, satisfying and worth your money.