EXCLUSIVE: First Look at the Scenic Design of NOLI ME TANGERE, THE OPERA 2019

Manila, Philippines--For more than 25 years, Jerry Sibal, New York-based event stylist-theatrical producer, has been creating magical settings, corporate retreats, charity balls, and opera premieres in the Northeastern United States and in Asia, particularly in Macau and the Philippines.

This time, he's back in Manila to restage National Artists Guillermo Tolentino and Felipe Padilla De Leon's Obra Maestra "Noli Me Tangere, The Opera" at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) on March 8-10, 2019, two years after the opera's triumphant return to the CCP stage.

Besides sharing the directorial reins with co-director Jose Jeffrey Camanag, Mr. Sibal is also excited about reimagining the scenic design for this year's staging of the "Noli" opera. Unlike his previous approach to the show's overall design, which was more of the grand scale, he's simplifying his designs for this new production whose digital renderings are found below.

"For the 2019 production, I'm using LED walls instead of projection mapping, which is nice but it has limitations such as its sharpness. However, with LED walls, you're like watching a movie," he tells BWW Opera.

"I tried to simplify the sets but it came out to be much more complicated blending the actual set pieces with the LED images. It's quite challenging to capture the scenes in 'real sense' with moving images, which, hopefully, would allow the audience to further immerse themselves on what's happening on stage," he adds.

"A main highlight of the show is the 'liwaliwan' or the river scene, where the character of Elias saves Crisostomo Ibarra from a dangerous crocodile. It should look realistic, no less, for the audience to appreciate and understand the scene."

In partnership with the CCP, in time for its 50th anniversary, with support from the Honorable Senator Loren Legarda, the Tourism Promotions Board of the Philippines, and E. Zobel Foundation Inc., J&S Productions Inc., spearhead by Mr. Sibal and his partner, Edwin Josue, fulfills its commitment anew to keep this masterpiece, the "Noli Me Tangere, The Opera" (1957), alive for the young Filipino audiences to experience and enjoy.

The staging of the opera, which is written in Tagalog, also coincides with the United Nations World Tourism Organization declaring 2019 as the "Year of Indigenous Language."

The opera is performed with English supertitles.

For tickets, call J&S Productions Inc. (63)947 168 1714, (63)915 819 3459, or visit TicketWorld.com.ph.

Digital Renderings: Alan Dela Rama

Scenic design by Jerry Sibal

Scenic design by Jerry Sibal

Scenic design by Jerry Sibal

Scenic design by Jerry Sibal

Scenic design by Jerry Sibal