VOICE Network

By Betty Uy-Regala

Tuesday,April 7, 2009 at 12:26pm

For the past three years, summer to me meant going to the CCP after work toattend the acting workshop in the evenings. This year, although I know I willmiss it terribly, I decided not to enroll -- lest I be nominated alongside Hogito the National Artist for Acting Workshops -- and just act by joiningproductions. To officially start my summer acting season, I was invited toperform at a national volunteer summit for youthvolunteers in Guimaras on April 1.

The organizers sent me a two-and-a-half-page script mid-March for a monologuebased on a story of a youth volunteer in Bulacan named Maricel Barahan. Since Iwas swamped that time with the Bowfinger project, a writing racket and, lateron, had a severe case of owl obsession, I only read through the script and didnot really study it.

Acting and volunteering are two things close to my heart. I felt honored thatthis network of volunteer organizations spent time and money so I could performfor its members in one show only. The pressure of giving them a show wasoutweighed by my love for the craft. Two days before my flight, I did thecharacter profile, analyzed the script, and finally buckled down to memorizationwork which extended until before the show started. Hello memory medications.

During that trip, I contemplated about certain choices in my life. It helpedthat Pagatpat Resort had that serene feel to it. In acting, there is no rightor wrong choice, there is only a choice that works in a scene.

In between rehearsals, amidst poor mobile signals in the resort, I texted Hogi,Haidee and Opa saying that this time I would like to experience the higherchoice. Of foregoing my owl obsessions, which limit rather than expand myalready limited understanding and experience of life. Of not settling for thegivens. Of not accepting everything that comes my way. Accepting is a principlein improve and had been a principle in my life prior to my formal actingtraining.

Acting allows firsthand discovery by 'being' the character. I am discovering alot of things about others and myself because acting is a study of characters.It is essentially a study of human nature and how people relate with oneanother. I remember a class we had with Sir Dennis Marasigan, our beloved andmuch respected teacher, on April 2, 2008, a Wednesday.

We were discussing the character?s objective. "Simplify the objective ofthe character in one (verb) word," he said. "In real life," heasked us, "what's that one thing you wouldn't compromise? That is yourmain objective in life." Tears immmediately formed in my eyes. I?vecompromised so much in the most important areas of my life that I can?t answerthis simple question. Good thing I was wearing eyeglasses that day and myclassmates, including Hogi, did not notice the unfolding of my mini drama.

The show in Guimaras went well (for one, I successfully memorizedtwo-and-a-half pages of lines!), and after that trip, I am aiming for thehigher choices. I want to have experiences emanating from those choices.

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Betty was one of the volunteer artists for the V-Monolugue during the 3rd National Volunteers Summit.