Dateline Movies Goes to Repertory's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

No one is too old for fairy tales. That was what I was thinking on my way to watch Repertory's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with my family. I have had the opportunity to watch similar shows staged by Repertory Philippines- Cinderella and Mulan, to be specific as part of the itinerary during my grade school field trips. Now that I am older and have discovered that I derive much joy in watching different kinds of entertainment, I watch every show, no matter the genre, with the same level of appreciation for the work that went into producing it.

In the old-time tradition of theatre shows, the play started on time. The audience was comprised of families like us who just wanted to have a good time in watching a quality play and young school children with their teachers, who were on their field trip. I don't know if it was because it was the first day of showing that food was made available at the lobby but it sure lent a very festive mood to the affair.

The story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is very popular among young children, whether boy or girl. This was true many generations ago and is still is today. This is probably due to the life lessons that it continues to teach through its entertaining story and presentation. 

Some of these are:

1. It's wonderful to have friends.

2. You can appeal to the goodness in everyone.

3. Insecurities do not justify being mean.

4. Don't talk to strangers and don't let them in your house.

5. Real beauty comes from within.

Easily the scene-stealer for the show is the Evil Queen convincingly played by Bituin Escalante for the particular day I watched. Come to think of it, every role from the smallest to the biggest, was performed in perfect character. I can only wonder how they can switch from speaking to singing to dancing with so much ease. Making it look so easy when in fact there is much hard work must be the mark of a good performer.

One thing I've always liked with Repertory shows specifically those intended for the young audience is the opportunity for audience participation. At least two girls were invited to yodel along with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Some chasing scenes extended to where the audience was seated and that proved very exciting for the children. 

Everyone was excited to meet the cast after the show. Some lucky ones had their souvenir programs autographed by their favorite character. Others had their pictures taken with the cast. It was truly a feel-good show and we went home very happy.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is directed by Joy Virata. It will be staged from August 15 to December 10, 2015 at the Onstage Theater in Greenbelt 1, Makati City. Ticket prices range from P400 to P600. For more details on the play, call the Repertory Philippines at 843-3570 and book tickets through TicketWorld at 891-9999 or visit their website at www.ticketworld.com.ph.

Movie Fact: Leonardo DiCaprio - Highest Paid Actor

Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio was born in Hollywood, California on November 11, 1974.  He started his career at a very young age.  He first appeared in the long-running children's television series Romper Room, working his way to doing television commercials then to blockbuster super-hit movies.  Now at the age of 40, he is one of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood commanding a staggering $ 25 million per movie.

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Watch Leonardo DiCaprio in one of his earliest commercials for Bubble Yum.

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Dateline Movies Presents: The Films of Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese have made 5 movie collaborations so far and the sixth one is coming out in the near future.  Their next film might be considered different from their other films in the sense that Leonardo DiCaprio will play the role of a serial killer, a bad person, or is he?  We'll just have to wait, but for now here are the 5 great and unforgettable films made by the tandem of Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio:

1. Gangs of New York

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Gangs of New York is the first film teaming Martin Scorsese with Leonardo DiCaprio.  It was released on December 20, 2002 and has a running time of 160 minutes.  It also stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, Liam Neeson, Jim Broadbent, John C. Reilly, Henry Thomas and Brendan Gleeson.  Gangs of New York earned for Martin Scorsese his very first Golden Globe Award for Best Director.  

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It also garnered 10 nominations at the 75th Academy Award including Best Picture, Best Director for Martin Scorsese, Best Actor for Daniel Day-Lewis, Best Original Song for "The Hands that Built America", performed by U2, Best Sound Mixing for Tom Fleischman, Eugene Gearty and Ivan Sharrock, Best Art Direction for Dante Ferretti and Francesca Lo Schiav, Best Cinematography for Michael Ballhaus, Best Costume Design for Sandy Powell, Best Film Editing for Thelma Schoonmaker and  Best Original Screenplay for Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan.

2.  The Aviator

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The Aviator, released in 2004 is the second film collaboration between Martin Scorsese and actor Leonardo DiCaprio.   It is a biographical drama that tells the story of aviation pioneer and film magnate Howard Hughes and his struggle from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder or OCD.   The Aviator received highly positive reviews and was met with widespread box-office success.   It also did well in the 77th Academy Awards where it was nominated in 11 categories and won 5 awards including  Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Cate Blanchett.

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The Aviator gives Martin Scorsese his fifth Best Director nomination in the Academy Awards.  He lost unfortunately to Clint Eastwood for his direction of Million Dollar Baby.  


3.  The Departed

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The Departed which was released in September 26, 2006 continues Martin Scorsese's collaboration with Leonardo DiCaprio and the first time Martin Scorsese will work with actors Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, and Martin Sheen.  The Departed is a crime drama thriller set in Boston and is based on the 2002 Hong Kong police drama film titled Infernal Affairs.

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The Departed got 5 nominations at the 79th Academy Awards and won four including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing for Thelma Schoonmaker (This is the third time Thelma Schoonmaker won this award and all of it came from editing Martin Scorsese's films) and finally the Academy Award for Best Director was won by Martin Scorsese.  It was presented to him by his longtime friends and film colleagues Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg.  Incidentally, one of the producers of the movie The Departed was Brad Pitt.

4.  Shutter Island

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The fourth picture collaboration between Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio was the 2010 psychological thriller movie Shutter Island.  It was based on the 2003 best-selling novel by Dennis Lehane and was published by Harper Collins.
It tells the story of two US Marshalls who was sent to investigate the disappearance of a patient who was confined in a hospital for the criminally-insane called Ashecliffe Hospital that was located on Shutter Island.

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The movie also stars Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, Patricia Clarkson and Max von Sydow.   Shutter Island was released on February 19, 2010 and became Martin Scorsese's highest grossing film to date.


5.  Wolf of Wall Street

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Martin Scorsese's film in 2013, The Wolf of Wall Street, is an American biographical black comedy based on the book the was released on September 2007 about the personal accounts and the life of stockbroker and trader Jordan Belfort and bearing the same title. The screenplay was written by Terence Winter and starred Leonardo DiCaprio portraying the role as Jordan Belfort alongside with Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Margot Robbie, Kyle Chandler, Rob Reiner, Jon Bernthal, Jon Favreau and Jean Dujardin. The Wolf of Wall Street marked the fifth film collaboration between Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio.

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The film was released on December 25, 2013. It tells the story of a New York stockbroker named Jordan Belfort played by DiCaprio, who engaged in unlawful and malicious transactions, committing large-scale securities fraud on Wall Street.  The Wolf of Wall Street was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Leonardo DiCaprio, Best Supporting Actor for Jonah Hill, Best Director for Martin Scorsese, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Terence Winter for unfortunately it did not win in any category it was nominated in.

6.  Devil in the White City 

And just recently, on August 10, 2015, it was announced that Martin Scorsese will direct an adaptation of the 2003 non-fiction book by Erik Larsen, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America , which will star Leonardo DiCaprio.  The story is set at the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 or more popularly known as the Chicago World Fair of 1893.  It tells the story of its premier architect and designer Daniel Burnham and Dr. Henry Howard Holmes or just H. H. Holmes, who was one of the first documented serial killers.  

Hoping that Leonardo DiCaprio will take the best Actor award on this film.  To my opinion, it is long overdue.  This guy deserves an Oscar.

DUP Opens 40th Theatre Season with Modern Romeo and Juliet

After 39 years of staging exceptional plays spanning from the classics to the contemporary, Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas (DUP) celebrates its 40th year via its theme - 20/20 Vision:
Clarity.Originality.Perspective. For its premiere offering, DUP presents #R</3J, a multimedia hallucination on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. 

#R</3J retells the star-crossed lovers’ narrative transforming Verona into a concrete jungle at the heart of Metro Manila – teeming with corruption, revolt, advertisements, sex, social media, and condominium units. The play captures the essence of the most enduring tragedy juxtaposing the young lovers’ romance with our present society’s many forms of commodified love. Can genuine love exist in a world of alterations and foolery? Exploiting our hyper-real contemporary moment – globalization, ultra-violence, internet foolishness, generation gap – the theatrical project seeks to dramatize, through a psychedelic mix of all available art forms, the postmodern tragedy of our generation. Destroy the city, the family, the government – even Shakespeare – but never destroy the will to love.

The production is a collaboration of professionals and up-and-coming artists. Dexter M. Santos (direction) heads the artistic team together with Guelan Varela-Luarca (adaptation). Joining the team are Krina Cayabyab (music composition and design), John Batalla (lights design), Ohm David (set design), Winter David, (video design), and Darwin Desoacido (costume design). This project features the Dulaang UP Ensemble and the works of young choreographers, video designers, installation artists, and dramaturgs.

There are three other major productions for DUP's 40th Theatre Season including King Lear/Haring Lear directed by Tony Mabesa, Henrik Ibsen's Peer Gynt directed by Jose Estrella, and The Dressing Room: That Which Flows Away Ultimately Becomes Nostalgia directed by Alexander Cortez. The season will be closed by Yugto: Dalawang Maikling Dula which is the UP Playwrights's Theatre's 25th offering, as directed by Banaue Miclat-Janssen.

#R</3J runs from August 26 to September 13, 2015 at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, 2nd floor, Palma Hall, U.P. Diliman. For tickets, reservation, sponsorships, and show buying inquiries, call Samanta Hannah Clarin or Camille Guevara at 926-1349, 433-7840, 981-8500 local 2449 or email dulaangupmarketing@gmail.com. Like the official Dulaang UP page at facebook.com/DulaangUnibersidadNgPilipinas.

Dateline Movie Countdown: The Cartoon Voice Actors and Actress of The Simpsons

Yes we all love The Simpsons, but did you know the actors and the actress who has lent their voices to make them come alive all these years.  Well, here they are:

Dan Castellaneta


Daniel Louis "Dan" Castellaneta was born on the upscale Oak Park Village located at Cooks County in the State of Illinois on October 29, 1957.  He is not only a talented voice-actor, but he is also a comedian, a screenwriter and also does some acting on the side.  He is a wellness advocate being a vegetarian and abstains from drinking any alcoholic beverages.  He exercises regularly and practices the Chinese martial art form of Tai Chi. 

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Besides giving Homer Simpson his voice, Dan Castellaneta also does the voices of Grandpa Simpson, Mayor Quimby, Groundskeeper Willie, Krusty the Clown and Barney Gumble.

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Dan Castellaneta also gave the voice of many other animated television characters from such series as Futurama, Hey Arnold, and Earthworm Jim, just to name a few.  He has also appeared in popular TV series such as Parks and Recreation, Castle, Alf, Mad About You, Married with Children etc.  Dan receives a hefty amount of $300,000 per episode plus commissions and royalties for doing The Simpsons alone. His total net worth to date is $60M. 

Julie Kavner 

Julie Deborah Kavner was born in Los Angeles, California on September 7, 1950 and gives the distinct "honeyed gravel voice," to Homer Simpson's very supportive and very caring wife Marjorie "Marge" Simpson.  She is said to have a net worth of about $50M.

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She is also the voice of her mother, Jacqueline Ingrid Bouvier and she also gave the somewhat raspy voices of her two older sisters, Patty and Selma Bouvier.  To know the distinction between the two sisters voices, Patty's voice is more masculine and has a much lower tone while Selma's voice is more sweeter.

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Her current total salary per episode of The Simpsons is approximately worth $300,000. And that does not include her commissions every time an episode is shown in another country.

Yeardley Smith

Martha Maria Yeardley Smith was born in Paris on July 3, 1964 and is known for giving Lisa Simpson her voice.  Besides being a voice actress, she is also a writer, a painter, and a comedian.  

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She currently earns about $300,000 per episode of The Simpsons plus royalties and commissions.  She has been acting for over 30 years now and has appeared in a number of films.

Nancy Cartwright

Nancy Jean Cartwright was born on October 25, 1957 in Dayton, Ohio. She is also a film and television actress and a comedian by heart.  She first auditioned to be the voice of Lisa Simpson but got interested instead with Bart's character. 

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She is also the voice of: 1. Ralph Wiggum, Son of Police Chief Clancy Wiggum; 2. Todd Flanders, Ned and Maude Flanders' younger son; 3. Nelson Muntz, the Bully; 4. Database, a nerdy student at Springfield Elementary School; 5. Kearney Zzyzwicz, another Springfield Elementary School bully; and 6. Ling Bouvier, Selma Bouvier's adopted daughter.  She earns $300,000 per episode doing The Simpsons plus other benefits.

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She has appeared in numerous live television series and does the voices of other popular animated television series characters.   She is also an author having written her own autobiography titled My Life as a Ten-Year-Old Boy published by Hyperion Books on September 2000.  She has adopted this book of hers into a One-Woman play which she has performed in various locations.  

Harry Shearer

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When one speaks of Harry Julius Shearer, one description definitely befits him - multi-talented.  He is a comedian, actor, voice actor, writer, a teacher, musician, director, producer and radio host.  He was born on December 23, 1943 in Los Angeles.  He is well known for his Simpsons characters such as Mr. Burns, Ned Flanders, Waylon Smithers,  Principal Seymour Skinner. 

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But he is also the voice of 1. Lenny Leonard, 2. Kent Brockman, 3. Reverend Lovejoy, 4. Dr. Hibbert, 5. Rainier Wolfcstle (Mcbain), 6. one of the extra-terrestrial aliens named Kang, 7. Dr. J. Loren Pryor - Springfield Elementary's school psychologist and 8. Judge Roy Snyder 

His career started early appearing in numerous films, TV shows, doing radio hosting and gigs on the side.  He earns $ 300,000 per episode on The Simpsons alone plus several benefits and royalties. His networth now is over $ 65M.   

Hank Azaria

Henry Albert Azaria was born on April 25, 1964 in Queens, New York.  Ever since he was a boy he was obsessed with acting.  His career did not came in an instant.  He started from the bottom doing odd jobs, performing as a stand-up comedian and appearing in one-liner roles in hit television series.  Now, Hank Azaria has done several films for the big screen, he has performed on stage shows, has lent his voice to several animated characters, has been nominated and has won several awards from the Screen Actors Guild Awards, Primetime Emmy Award, American Comedy Award, Annie Award, Teen Choice Award and others.  

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Here's a list* of the more than twenty characters Hank Azaria has portrayed in The Simpsons:

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1. Rafael or better known as Wiseguy - works in the Service industry. He has been dubbed by fans as  "The Sarcastic Middle-Aged Man" whose voice is similar to that of Charles Bronson.

2. Chief Clancy Wiggum - the Chief of Police in Springfield.

3. Kirk Van Houten - Milhouse Van Houten's father who is a factory worker

4. Johnny Tightlips - one of Fat Tony's henchmen

5. Drederick Tatum - a professional boxer, a caricature of World Heavyweight Champ Mike Tyson

6. Cletus Spuckler - Slack-Jawed Yokel.

7. Snake Jailbird - a recidivist (frequently commits a crime)

8. Dr. Nick Riviera - an incompetent medical doctor 

9. Old Jewish Man - a resident at the Springfield Retirement Castle

10. Captain Horatio McCallister - Sea captain.

11. Luigi - an Italian restaurant proprietor.

12. Legs and Louie - Legs is another henchmen of Fat Tony voiced by Hank Azaria, the other one Louie is voiced by Dan Castellaneta

13. Professor John Frink - a scientist and an inventor whose voice is somewhat similar to Jerry Lewis

14. Duffman - the Spokes-mascot for Duff Beer whose real name is Barry Duffman. 

15. Disco Stu - an avid Disco aficionado.

16. Mr. Costington - the President of Costington's Department Store. 

17. bumblebee man - a Star of the slapstick sketch comedy show aired on Canal Ocho

18.  Apu Nahasapeemapetilon - the owner of the Kwik-E-Mart, whose voice is somewhat similar to that of Peter Sellers

19. Moe Szyslak - Owner of Moe's Tavern whose voice is somewhat similar to Al Pacino

20. Superintendent Gary Chalmers - Public schools superintendent.

21. Carl Carlson - Springfield Nuclear Power Plant employee.

22. Comic Book Guy - Proprietor of The Android's Dungeon comic book store whose real name was revealed to be Jeff Albertson in the episode of "Homer and Ned's Hail Mary Pass".

Hank Azaria earns $300,00 per episode on The Simpsons like all the rest the cast plus royalties, commissions and other bonuses.  His net worth now is about $70M.

Watch this humorous video featuring the cast of The Simpsons answering questions using their animated voices.

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*info of this list is from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_The_Simpsons_characters additional info taken from http://www.celebritynetworth.com/

Movie Review - Begin Again

Begin Again is a drama film with a little bit of comedy and music on the side that is written and directed by Irish TV/Movie writer and director John Canney. He is the same person who wrote and directed the award-winning indie film Once, in 2007.  Begin Again was released on June 27, 2014 and has a running time of 104 minutes.

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Begin Again stars Keira Knightley as Gretta James, an aspiring young and talented singer and songwriter who is the girlfriend of soon-to-be-famous rock and roll star Dave Kohl; Mark Ruffalo as Dan Mulligan, a music label executive producer struggling to get back to his old job; Catherine Keener as Miriam Hart, Dan's estranged wife; Hailee Steinfeld as Violet Mulligan, Dan and Miriam's young daughter and a budding guitarist; Adam Levine as Dave Kohl, the ex-boyfriend of Gretta and a rising musician; James Corden as Steve, Gretta's best friend who is also aspiring to be a musician; Yasiin Bey as Saul, Dan's long-time business partner; and CeeLo Green as Troublegum, a successful rapper who was discovered by Dan. 

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Gretta accompanies Dave Kolh, her boyfriend, to New York City where he is to begin recording his new album under a famous record company. After weeks in the Big City, Dave now caught up with his new-found fame and stardom, announces to Gretta that he has a new person of interest and they sadly split up. While Gretta was singing in a bar one night, her voice caught the attention of Dan who was just recently been fired from his job. Captivated by her talent and good singing voice, Dan persuades Gretta that he will produce an album featuring her songs. Unable to find a recording studio to back up their plans, they agreed to just record their songs in the streets of New York. They begin by recruiting a team of musicians to help them in their musical collaboration.

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I was really captivated by this film, not only because I enjoyed watching Keira Knightley in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, not because I like Mark Ruffalo turn into the green man as The Incredible Hulk or just because I am a fan of Adam Levine and Maroon Five,  it is because it is a really good film.  The soundtrack of the movie Lost Stars, is simply charming.  Keira Knightley as well as Adam Levine sung different versions of Lost Stars and they were both magnificent.  I didn't know Keira can sing.  Man I was wrong! The song Lost Stars was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 87th Academy Awards.

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Watch Keira Knightley sing "Like a Fool" from the movie Begin Again. In the movie, Gretta sings this particular song and dedicate it to Dave.  She expresses her sad feelings about their broken relationship and sings and records it using her cellphone and sending it directly to Dave's voice mail.  The way she does this is heart-warming and at the same time humorous in a way.  The Soundtrack of this movie holds the number 1 position in my playlist. 

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Keira Knightley sings her own version of "Lost Stars". I got this one accompanied with lyrics and maybe you can sing along with it.

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Next is a scene with Dave Kohl singing Lost Stars at his concert at Gramercy Theatre.  

Begin Again is available on iTunes.

Begin Again, the movie soundtrack is available on iTunes.