Delia D.: A drag queen gets her spectacular moment of fame
Delia D.: A Musical Featuring the Songs of Jonathan Manalo, playing at Newport World Resorts, has been getting a lot of buzz for being the first full-blown original theater piece dedicated to a Filipino drag queen in the titular role, which is a big deal for the LGBTQIA+ community that has always been lamenting how they are not represented enough in mainstream culture or if ever they are, it is through gross misrepresentation via stereotypes like neighborhood parloristas who are loud, frivolous and the butt of jokes, often of the slapstick variety, if not downright toilet humor.
Phi Palmos, who plays Delia, knows this only too well as he grew up never seeing a character that he could identify with because on film and TV, the bakla was always persecuted by the family and society, or was there for comic relief, “yung tinatapunan ng tubig o cake o sinasampal”—things he never experienced with his own family with whom he has a loving relationship.
The musical changes all that as the drag queen is humanized through Delia, an Ozamis native who finds support from a mother who shares her dream of one day making it big as a singer in Manila, and from her adopted family at the Drag & Tell Nightclub, run by the flamboyantly hysterical Mama Eme (John Lapus) who rules a la-Bella Flores in her own kingdom of the camp which the scenic designer Lawyn Cruz has conjured realistically enough with all the glitter concealing the grime reminiscent of seedy bars from Manila to Bali to Bangkok. Contained in a floating module that turns and switches into Delia’s pad, fabulous numbers by the Divalettes segue into Delia’s private moments with her mother and brother.
The transitions are seamlessly orchestrated by director Dexter Santos, keeping you engaged with the action on stage that is never short of spectacle, visually and musically—from the over-the-top costumes of Mitoy Sta. Ana and the dazzling lighting of John Batalla to the carefully crafted musical arrangements of Vince Lim and the high-octane choreography of Stephen Viñas. The chart-breaking songs of Jonathan Manalo, whose career spans 24 years and has amassed over 8 billion streams, are woven into the story by playwright Dolly Dulu. The songs resonate, even for those unfamiliar with his music, and six new original songs were written to fit particular threads.
It gets even better as scenes progress from micro to macro, from intimate to lavish, when Delia decides to join Idols of the Galaxy, the biggest nationwide singing competition of JBC TV station. This is all well and good as she pursues her lifelong dream but there is one major drawback: Delia cannot really sing, at least not Tawag ng Tanghalan level the way Nora Aunor clinched the first prize in her classic rags-to-riches story. But no matter, her fantastic costumes, wigs and dancing prowess captivate the audience and she inches her way as a semi-finalist, opening her POV to the wider, glitzy world of showbiz and all its intrigues.
She meets her idol, the singer Mamon, sharply played by Tex Ordoñez-De Leon with the haughtiness of a contest judge who sees right through Delia’s borloloy and thereafter sets a suspicious eye on her. She gets more sympathy from Sir T (Floyd Tena) who sees the potential to make her a star no matter what it takes. She bonds with Kiki, a tough rival judiciously essayed by Shaira Opsimar who has that powerful voice to make it through this galaxy and beyond; and falls for the impossibly hot Raymond (Omar Uddin who is one of the theater’s heartthrobs of the moment, with the voice and acting chops to match).
Spoilers follow: Phi Palmos makes for a very convincing Delia, with all the naiveté and charm of a probinsyana who easily becomes a crowd favorite and she does win the title with all its attendant rewards—endorsements, record deals, a solid love team with Raymond—which makes her the newly ordained Delia D., glowing with success and fulfillment until she discovers that she is only a product of hype and maneuverings of Sir T who has been managing her career and has even limited her recordings to novelty songs, which is as far as her talent can take her.
To make things worse, Kiki is transformed from her homely pig-tail looks to a vampy diva, endorsed by Mamon who parades her around as the true deserving winner of the competition.
Mama Eme, who feels abandoned by Delia, even hosts Kiki for a show at the club. This puts the station management in panic mode, prompting head honcho GVB (played with calculating cool by Mimi Marquez who just takes over the stage with her singing and presence) to call for a face-off of the two dueling divas.
All this takes place in the second act which makes for an exciting conclusion on who will finally win and how will this affect Delia and her relationships with everyone in her life. The pace also goes faster and although the first act is enjoyable for all the exhilarating production numbers, the characters could have probably been developed further to prepare you for the transformations and situations in the second. Overall, it is still a well-crafted production that makes for a highly entertaining evening at the theater and is commendable for how the queer community has been given their moment to shine in a show of this magnitude—paving the way for more works with sensitive and truthful representation in the future.
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‘Delia D.: A Musical Featuring the Songs of Jonathan Manalo runs until June 8 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater. Tickets at SM Tickets, TicketWorld, HelixPay, and Newport World Resorts Box Office. Follow @newportworldresorts and @nwr.musicals on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.