Of absurdities and realities: Dissecting the Parokya ni Edgar musical ‘Buruguduystunstugudunstuy’

“Merging the iconic music of Parokya ni Edgar with a storyline as unique as this was no easy task,” says Yatco. “Since the story was so colourful (as colourful as Parokya ni Edgar’s discography), I wanted the music to be diverse, wild, and fantastical. Hence, I ended up with a musical that comprised different genres, including rock, pop, funk, rap, country, Caribbean, Spanish, opera, salsa, techno, and even gospel,” he adds.

“I’m thinking this could be one long ‘acid trip’?” Vera laughs, recalling the initial writing stages of Buruguduystunstugudunstuy. “Eventually, I began to understand that this fantastic and inexplicable journey was an inner adventure one just has to go through in order to understand and be aware of oneself. And that’s the risk I decided to take. Create a world where nothing seems to make sense, and yet, each of us begins to understand our way. That reality can only make sense to us... separately, which, ironically can be the source of our collective action.”

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Buruguduystunstugudunstuy follows the story of four women—a high school student, a matron, a scavenger, and a lady guard—experiencing the strangest birthday of their lives on December 6. The show begins with an ordered chaos of four storylines happening simultaneously and alternately, which leads to the beginning of their journey towards radical transformation.

Aiza (Kyle Napuli), Girlie (Natasha Cabrera), Norma (Tex Ordoñez-De Leon, Jen (Marynor Madamesila) and her younger brother Tikmol (Noel Comia, Jr) discover a portalet—which was a literal toilet in the middle of a desolate place somewhere in Metro Manila—that transports them into the quirky, surreal world of Parokya.

A mysterious and persistent drumbeat, which only the four women could hear, led them to this. The drumbeat called them to an adventure they weren’t prepared for, and they were even resistant to what it was leading them to.

“It’s inside our heads, but it’s too real to ignore it,” describes Vera. “If you’re outside looking in, the world of Parokya won’t probably make any sense. But if you immerse yourself and take that ‘magic spaceship’ ride, you alone and nobody else will understand. That, for me, sums up this story, as well as the experience of the music of Parokya ni Edgar.”

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In this fantastical, wild world, they meet peculiar characters, including the Bigotilyos, who, in many ways, sometimes unintentionally, help them confront their own personal transformations, face their demons, and discover the mystery of the drums.

For Norma, an ageing woman at her post-menopausal stage, there is still a thirst for true love. And yet, with many failures in building romantic relationships, she learnt to harden her heart and lose trust in all men, even those with the purest intentions. Aiza, though in her blossoming years as a teenager, also has the same sentiment. However, this stems from her lack of self-esteem due to the persistent bullying she had been experiencing from men and women who chose to look down on her because of her disability.

Due to the nature of Parokya ni Edgar’s songs, Vera, Yatco, and Santos found this gender conflict interesting to flesh out. Though most of them were romantic, the band’s discography has a language that is kolokoy, which was acceptable at the time.

“The first idea was: female leads. How would these characters react to the songs of Parokya ni Edgar? How would they tell their stories, from their point of view, as women? That was a challenge we committed ourselves to doing,” Vera says.

The subtlety of Buruguduystunstugudunstuy’s dialectic approach to this turned out well and optimistic. Perhaps one factor is that the songs have already grown in the consciousness of the band’s fans. However, the show remained careful in addressing it, veering away from the shock factor Ang Huling El Bimbo has left with its audience. This time, the company addressed such a relevant topic with simplicity yet with a gratifying redemption.

“We think it’s absolutely time for us to have this kind of conversation,” quips Kyle Napuli, who plays Aiza.

“Honestly, growing up, I didn’t feel that the Parokya ni Edgar songs were just for men or very masculine in language and humour... It has a certain relatability,” explains Madamesila, who plays Jen.

Miranda jumped into the conversation to explain their creative process when they were writing the songs. “As a songwriter, I try to have a conversation with everyone [but would always have] a male point of view. For example Halaga, it was directed towards girls, reminding them to have their sense of self-value. Of course, we would have songs that are suitable for drinking sessions. But whenever we write songs, it’s just like trying to start a conversation with anyone willing to listen—including girls and members of the LGBTQ+,” Miranda says.

In the storyline of Jen and Tikmol, we see a glimpse of the plight of the underprivileged masses and the social class struggle that has marked the Filipino people. Yet, we see them owning their destiny and proving that social change starts with oneself. Lastly, we see Girlie struggling to fit into a prejudicial society until she discovers that only by accepting one’s true nature can we truly be happy, especially with the people who see us and love us for who we are.

Somehow, this rings true to Parokya ni Edgar’s impact on the social milieu—it transcends both class and time. “Buruguduystunstugudunstuy is a tribute to the identity of the band as well as their vibrant contribution to Pinoy pop culture,” says Santos. “As the four women in the musical embark on a journey to Parokya-verse, we hope that you get to experience the timeless songs through a medium we all love—the theatre, an artform that fuses the narrative, characters, music, dance and other performative and technical elements to capture that ephemeral moment,” he adds.

It was a daunting task indeed, yet the whole cast and production staff braved the challenge. The lighting design was spot-on, the video projection was top-notch, the choreography was riveting, and the aesthetics of each scene were surreal yet rooted in Parokya ni Edgar’s visual language.

But amid the spectacularity of the production, Buruguduystunstugudunstuy’s true value lies in the earnestness of its story. 

“I got much of [this musical’s] humour from the band’s nonsensical babble, too. Listening to their songs makes one utter sounds one hasn’t even made before, you know, like Buruguduy... and even that has some tenderness to it, if you whisper it, in rhythm,” Vera concludes.

On top of the regular schedule of 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays and matinee shows of 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays until June 23, new shows are added to accommodate more fans. Starting May 26, theatregoers can now watch the musical every Thursday and Sunday evening.

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