DANCING LESSONS - A love story of moving misconceptions

Twin Bill Theater's new production Dancing Lessons would move you to an emotional level as you will be given another understanding of a person with autism. The show is already playing at the Power Mac Center Spotlight Theater for a limited time, this show should not be missed.

Written by Mark St. Germain, inspired with his encounter with a couple with an autistic child, we can think that they see the world differently and they are very intuitive that's why they act as such. This story is actually a romcom about Ever Montgomery, a science professor with Asperger's syndrome and hypersensitivity, which I only heard about yesterday as they call it that way - and Senga Quinn, a Broadway dancer who has suffered a major leg injury in a car accident. Ever is played by Randy Villarama and Jill Pena stars as Senga.

Randy Villarama (Ever Montgomery) and Jill Pena (Senga Quinn)

Ever lacks social skills but a very important event would require him to have contact with people, he asks for dancing lessons from Senga so that he could deal with handshaking, hugs and dancing. Through the lessons, a relationship slowly develops that has both of them stepping out of their comfort zones.

What is funny about Dancing Lessons is I remember watching The Big Bang Theory with Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco). The humor injected with Ever's obsessive-compulsive condition would be very similar to that. Thanks to TBBT and of course our understanding about the Asperger's syndrome, we now should have learned that it should not be treated as an abnormality but rather there is a different spectrum of the world for them. It is the availability of these materials that the world may be more colorful for them than what we see. But at the bottom of it, we all deserve to love and be loved. Who knows they can teach us a new universe of knowledge that we are unaware of, and what the world we are in as "neurotypicals" is what they are trying to discover because of its complexity. Dancing Lessons shows us both perspectives and I'm glad that Randy and Jill has given great performance for the eyes and for the heart. A wonderful material for everyone to witness.

Dancing Lessons shows are August 16, 17, 21-24 at 8:30PM at the PowerMac Center Spotlight Theater. Tickets are available at the venue.

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WIT theater review

TwinBill theater's new production WIT gave a stronger reason that all of us are just mere basic living things that will some time fall to the ground, no matter how much we strive for greater things and search for superiority of one self than others.

It was a lecture on medical terms. Thanks to Tami Monsod, who plays Ms Vivian Bearing, who gives an elaborate explanation of her ovarian cancer with proper diction despite the consequences of putting this play in an auditorium with less the quality of acoustics to hear the words uttered herein. The story gets more and more interesting as she narrates her childhood and life as a college professor and doctor of literature. It was also very impressive of her to shave her head and immerse into the character, making her perfectly fit for the role.

The woman called Vivian Bearing was a very special individual. Her confrontations with cancer are very inspiring, but nevertheless, her innocence and eagerness to learn about her illness and to face her strong medications are exceptional. It will take you up in happiness and chase your younger years.

Tami Monsod as Vivian Bearing

Mikkie Bradshaw and Bibo Reyes as the nurse and doctor respectively are two of the important roles in Vivian Bearing's life. Two very different characters which stood by her side in her last moments. The nurse, made her comfortable and looked after her as if she is the only family left, and the doctor, in his adrenalized emotions, giving abrupt judgements on the cancer is somehow funny.

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