Teatro Tomasino, the official University-wide theatre guild, staged “Punk’s Not Dead” at the Audio Visual Room at the Tan Yan Kee Student Center on March 10.
The story revolves around a conversation among three characters: Ms. Apple (Eula Beatriz), a school adviser; Bireng (Nicole Saunar), a mother of a student; and Artur (Alfie Fiel), the father of a student and a policeman.
What begins as a routine parent-teacher meeting quickly turns into an intense confrontation when a tattoo boldly declaring “Punk’s Not Dead” is revealed. This highlights the persistent, deep-seated prejudices and stereotypes in the Philippines that the production aims to expose.
“Ang ginawa kong art movement is realism, kasi gusto kong maramdaman or makita talaga ng tao na ‘yung mga nakikita nila sa play ay nangyayari talaga dito sa Pilipinas,” Sean Paolo Velarde, second year communications student, said in an interview with the Varsitarian.
It offered an intriguing exploration of the culture of impunity, the root of extrajudicial killings.
The play cleverly adopted a more human-centric approach rather than a broad, government-level lens. It centered on the experiences of the victims of extrajudicial killings (EJK) during the Duterte drug war.
“It’s a protest. Itong Teatro Tomasino, ginamit namin siyang platform to amplify ‘yong voices ng victims ng EJK. At the same time, ‘yong victims [din] na nakakaranas ng injustice dito sa Pilipinas,” Velarde said.
Although the production was undeniably impactful, its pacing was a double-edged sword: the swift escalation of tension drove the conflict forward, but ultimately sacrificed the opportunity to provide the characters with the breathing room necessary for a more in-depth history and connection.
Ultimately, “Punk’s Not Dead” achieved its goal of making the audience empathize with victims of injustice. This was made possible by the dynamics of the performers and the intimate storytelling, which allowed the audience to momentarily step into the characters’ shoes.
