When I hear the word “ballet,” the first thing that comes to my mind was “ballet shoes.” I have always admired people who can do ballet especially because of these shoes that they wear on performances. But other than the usual, I am not very familiar with ballet shows or know much about the performers. However, I am still interested to explore different forms of art especially by Filipino artists. So when I received an invitation to watch “The Merry Widow” by Philippine Ballet Theatre, I immediately took the opportunity and signed myself on a Saturday afternoon show.
April 5th. The show was held at Samsung Performing Arts Theatre in Ayala Mall Circuit, Makati. The staff were so accommodating that I easily got seated and was able to comfortably watch the show.
I enjoyed watching the show so much. I specifically loved how the costumes seem to create a story of their own as the ballerinas perform each of their intricate moves. The male performers did an astounding job as well in delivering emotions through their dance. Something I realized and will definitely take note of is that I should’ve done some research about the story or at least read the plot beforehand. Although I was able to get a gist as I watch along. Thanks to the great story-telling and execution of the scenes. There were serious moments and fun ones which in my opinion, kept the viewers hooked until the end of the performance. The set design being the biggest part of the stage did not disappoint either. The way it set the tone for every scene, even though some props are just a portion of the space, it still gave justice to the scene!
I wasn’t sure if they normally do this on ballet shows but there was a photo opportunity session after the show outside the theater. Thankfully, I was able to take a photo with some of the performers and congratulate them personally for a successful show.
The show ended but my fascination to ballet shows only started that day. So much respect to the artists and people behind the curtain.
It rained a lot on show day but thankfully, I was able to reach the venue safely. I can still remember feeling a bit nervous to enter as the façade of the venue itself already gave off a classy, high-end vibe. I was not used to going to such places. So aside from witnessing a ballet show for the first time, this is also another first for me.
I experienced a lot of firsts from this invitation and I am very grateful that I get to witness this form of art and interact with the artists at such a prestigious venue as well. Definitely deserves a place in my core memory shelf!