Batang Rizal

Pepe with his mother, Teodora Alonzo

 

 

We all know Rizal’s last words, what he wore on his execution. We’ve read his famous books and we all think we know the guy. Rizal the writer. Rizal the doctor. Rizal the hero. Rizal the man. But beyond his marbled figures, his pop icon graphics (Rizal sporting raybans?), what else do we know about the Rizal? What was his childhood like? Did he ever exchange blows with boys of his age? Was he skinny? What games did he play? Our history books skipped these among all things as author’s fast-forwarded Rizal’s chronicles to his manhood…to his death—so we end up knowing more about how the man died, than how he lived.

 

PETA’s Batang Rizal, written by Christine Bellen, explores on Rizal’s childhood, his relationship with his family, his siblings and his life back in Calamba, Laguna. During the time when the great hero used to be called Pepe and the Rizal we know was still a Mercado.

But the life of the hero will not be retold simply as it was. It will be in this time that a boy from the present, Pepito, will magically cross paths with our hero. Together the two boys will traverse time and history as they share each one’s experiences and struggles. And in their journey they will learn about friendship, and the real truth about heroes …

A side-splitting comedy directed by Dudz Teraña with music by award-winning composer Vince de Jesus, Batang Rizal is surely more than a visual history lesson—it carries a more valued message: that each one, even children, can be heroes.

Batang Rizal is showing at the PETA Theater Center on Sept 19, 20, 27, 28 (3pm), Oct 3-5, 11, 12, 18 (10am), Oct 17 (9am) and Oct 19 (3 pm). For inquiries and ticket reservations, please call PETA Marketing at (02) 4100821/7256244 or text 0927-7031437.

*Schedules may change without prior notice.