REPERTORY PHILIPPINES’ production of Silent Sky comes at an opportune time when more and more Filipinas find themselves silenced and reduced to being the butt of “jokes” by the highest government official, with his spokesman describing women who complain of this treatment as “OA” or over-acting.

To claim one’s voice as a woman and a person, one who has purpose will never be OA. Silent Sky has the same message: silence the noise and pursue a passion.

In celebration of the Women’s Month in March, Silent Sky is a story of empowerment.

The play tells us how far feminism come — not far enough it seems as the story, set in the early part of the 20th century, still resonates today. Society, then and now, favors men in the work force, and women are still expected to stay at home to take care of the kitchen and the children. But the play’s heroine, Henrietta Levitt, rises above these challenges.

Silent Sky tells the true story of astronomer Henrietta Levitt who literally reached for the stars in the 1920s when her pioneering work led to the discovery of galaxies other than our own. Levitt’s work paved the way for “better known” male astronomers like Edwin Hubble, who is said to have discovered the cosmos.

Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky, then, is a tribute to women who search for recognition in a patriarchal world.

“I want them to see the power of a woman — anybody actually — but more so of a woman, especially when she takes her own chance when people don’t give it to her. She’ll take it anyway. I want to bring the value of passion even if women are [suppressed]. The power of passion over what you want to do and what you are doing,” said Rep’s artistic director Joy Virata, who directs the play, during a rehearsal that was opened to the press.

“And I also want them to know about astronomy, but not in a lecture-y way,” she added, smiling.

Ms. Virata said she’s always liked the playwright Gunderson, so choosing Silent Sky for this season’s repertoire was a no-brainer.

“I like the author. I’ve liked her for three years. She wrote a nice piece on why theater is important to children. I printed it. So when I saw Silent Sky and her name, I read it and I liked it a lot,” she said.

Silent Sky stars Cathy Azanza as Henrietta, Caisa Borromeo as Henrietta’s sister Margie, Topper Fabregas as Henrietta’s love interest Dr. Peter Shaw, and Naths Everette and Shiela Francisco as Henrietta’s colleagues at the Harvard Observatory College.

Since the play features a small cast of veteran actors, Ms. Virata said that the challenging part became working without a set. The play features a stark stage, empty save for a stairway and the two tables where Henrietta does her astronomical studies. The play will span 30 years, with music and lighting signalling the passage of time.

John Batalla is the lighting designer and Jethro Joaquin is the sound designer.

Silent Sky will run from March 2 to 25 at Onstage, Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center in Makati City. For show schedules and tickets (P1,200 and P1,500), visit TicketWorld (www.ticketworld.com.ph). — Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

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