IN AN ERA of misinformation, creative agency The Corner Studio is entering the theater scene with its inaugural production, Pilato, which questions just what the truth is, with its story of Pontius Pilate. The musical will take audiences through his divisive decision regarding the fate of Jesus Christ, and how this came to be.

“It’s interesting to look at the trial and crucifixion of Jesus Christ from the perspective of Pilate, without becoming just another Senakulo. It’s an old story, so we brought it to today’s view, with the question Pilate himself asked over 2,000 years ago — what is the truth?” said Eldrin Veloso, Pilato’s writer and director, in a press conference in February.

“Our challenge is to do this production from a place of nowhere. We’re not yet an established theater company. We’re starting from scratch, and we’re excited to do it with this musical,” he added.

Pilato is an all-original Filipino musical slated to run from April 4 to 13 at the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) Theater Center in Quezon City. Its music is composed by Yanni Robeniol, with Pauline Arejola as the musical director.

Scheduled for the week before Holy Week, the production aims to depict the Roman prefect Pilato as “a man caught in the crossroads of power, faith, and duty,” his ambitions on the line as he comes across the enigmatic figure of Hesus.

Jerome Ferguson plays Pilato, in his first-ever lead role in a musical.

“In my 15 years in theater, I’m honored to be originating a new role. For me, the challenge is to humanize this antagonistic character — that’s how people will see him going into the play,” Mr. Ferguson said.

“Alam na nating lahat na siya nga ang hahatol na ipapapatay si Hesus. Ano ang katotohanan sa pangyayari na iyon? (We all know that he ultimately orders the death of Jesus. But what is the truth behind that event?)” he explained.

Mr. Ferguson will share the stage with Christy Lagapa, a relative newcomer to the scene and a graduating student from the University of the Philippines’ College of Music. She will play Procla, Pilato’s wife.

“I’ve never experienced being a wife, since I’m young, but I’ve been in a relationship. That familiarity with someone, in the character of Procla who is an outspoken, educated, ambitious woman — I can see myself in that,” Ms. Lagapa said. “She gives another perspective of the truth, of what the controversial Pilato is like behind closed doors.”

INVITING REFLECTION
Other members of the cast are Onyl Torres as the historiographer Josepo, Noel Rayos as the magnetic figure of Hesus, Jeremy Manite as the calculating high priest Caiaphas, Marit Samson as Publius, Chan Babutazo as Decimus, and Ard Lim as Marcus.

Mr. Torres said that his is the only fictional character in the musical, through which they will channel the idea of “history repeating itself.”

“Josepo is a combination of different Roman historiographers. He’ll be the one to show how the problems back then are still problems today, how we human beings don’t learn, and tend to have this intrinsic desire to self-destruct, to love, to be jealous, to matter,” he said.

Aside from arriving in time for Holy Week, Pilato also hopes to speak to the critical 2025 elections, with writer-director Mr. Veloso describing it as “a vital meditation on truth in all its complexity.”

For Mr. Rayos, who plays Hesus, the drive to put out this musical comes from the harrowing experience of the pandemic that not many people have fully processed.

“For me, Pilato is part of our decision to do things that matter, that will touch people,” he explained.

Composer Yanni Robeniol spoke to the goal to reach all Filipinos — young and old, religious and non-religious — through the music.

“Ang dami naming pinanghugutan para sa bawat kanta (We drew from a lot of references for each song). The overall structure is similar to Les Miserables, the mood is like Hamilton, and the orchestration is inspired by Disney musicals such as Hercules and Aladdin,” said Ms. Robeniol.

Pilato marks the inaugural theatrical venture of The Corner Studio, a creative branding, production, marketing, and design agency. The musical runs from April 4 to 13, at the PETA Theater Center, with tickets available via pilato.helixpay.ph. — Brontë H. Lacsamana

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WHILE it is easy to find oneself overwhelmed by the perpetual dance of stimuli that fills the world today, photographer Denise Weldon finds it is useful to be guided by light, to be able to zero in on the rare sense of quiet and grace that can often emerge from the shadows.

Be it the play of light from windows onto a plain floor, the curl of a lotus leaf under the rays of the sun, or the contrast of candle fire on a dark wall, Ms. Weldon’s photography seeks to illuminate the quiet power of objects and places we encounter every day. In the monochrome stillness of her photos, she unveils something very spiritual and almost magical, even.

“You have to ask yourself, ‘What do I need to see today?’ and discern what exactly it is. You don’t always hit the target, and maybe you end up thinking too much. It’s all about trusting your eyes and being moved by what you see,” said Ms. Weldon, whose work has been put together in a curated survey of her 30-year photographic journey.

Titled Witness of the Quiet, the exhibit was curated by art consultant Miguel Rosales of Caramel Art Advisory. The photographs, ranging from portraiture to landscape to still life, are laid out meticulously across the Yuchengco Museum’s fourth-floor gallery, on view for the entirety of March. The chosen works speak to “cycles of birth and rebirth, light and dark, the young and the mature,” Ms. Weldon said.

With the mindset that all spaces are studios and that all subjects are teachers, the images of people, places, and things that are captured bring forth a sort of visual calm. However, putting all of it together was anything but, requiring intense collaboration.

“Jeannie Javalosa (director of the Yuchengco Museum) texted me that the space opened up for the months of February and March, asking me if I wanted to have a show there, and that she wanted to move the museum in a new direction and integrate photography in the gallery more. I said sure, without thinking,” said Ms. Weldon.

And so, with the help of Mr. Rosales on the curation and Bam Laurel of Fluid for graphic design, they distilled many of her exhibitions over the years into a survey. The overarching theme of Witness of the Quiet emerged naturally.

“It was a common thread we saw, regardless of the individual themed exhibits,” she explained. The space itself was also maximized, from the inside of the elevator to stepping out into the fourth floor.

Ms. Weldon also spoke of the relevance of having the show during Arts Month in February and Women’s Month in March.

“Everything just aligned for that to happen,” she said. “As a woman, you wear many hats with each role that you play — the responsibility of being a wife and a mother, and of doing your work.”

When asked what she saw upon seeing the survey in full, she said that it showed that precarious balance that had to be developed over the years: “The work reflected how I quietly showed up in all areas. Finding balance was an important key.” For her, this was achieved through her spirituality, namely her devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe, though the answer is different for each person.

There’s much to reflect on in the black-and-white images, gentle glimpses of a spiral staircase illuminated by the light above or the shriveled-up heart of a tree evoking the textures of aging. The meditative self-inquiry that Ms. Weldon invites through her photography is the essence that she hopes viewers will take home.

This serene approach to viewing life was something the photographer taught for an afternoon at the start of March, at the very space in the museum where her works are exhibited. Aside from guiding guests through the various photographs, Ms. Weldon led a meditative experience, an event which will likely be replicated before the exhibit ends.

“I see the beauty in the chaos all the time. I think it’s not so much a romantic perspective, but a reminder of what is there that we are forgetting to look at, to listen to, to feel,” she said.

Witness of the Quiet is on view at the fourth-floor photography gallery of Yuchengco Museum at the RCBC Plaza, Ayala corner Gil Puyat Aves, in Makati City until March 31. For more details on the exhibit and events related to it, visit the museum’s Facebook and Instagram pages. — Brontë H. Lacsamana