1

(Appendix A)

WORKSHEET FOR A PLAY REVIEW

INTRODUCTION:

Title of the Play: KALSADA.

Director/s: Jewel Love G. Lazarte, Hasmin B. Afan, Arizielle Layne V. Garcia,
Mary Joyce T. Longos, Lian Kyla A. Madrid, and Myta Abigail L. Tadifa.
Producer/s: Centro Escolar University Dramatic Guild (Manila).
Actors/Actresses: Dominador Joshoua P. Policarpio IV as Toper,
John Lemuel A. Ermita as Shem,
George Nicholas V. Magsayo as Chief Alfred Bautista,
Althea Mariz V. Aruta as Journalist Trisha Hernandez.

Brief Description of Major Characters:

1. Toper is a young gunman who claims that killing both the convicted and
the accused of a crime, without the force and authority of law, is neither an
illegal job nor guilt in his principles in life. His source of income arises from
the unlawful premeditated killing of someone instructed by a third person.
2. Shem is a matured man associated with Toper because he has been in
the same field of activity for a long time. He is the one who encourages
Toper to quit his illicit activities because it will never do anything good. He
wants Toper to learn from his experiences in such activity.
3. Chief Alfred Bautista is model of police corruption. He is a law enforcer
who irresponsibly live up his political contract and abuse its inherent
powers for personal gain. He obstructs and delays justice for the victims of
extrajudicial killings in Pinagkaitan Street.
4. Trisha Hernandez is a freelance journalist who claims that all news is
important other than show business (showbiz). She is dedicated in finding
the cause of extrajudicial killings in Pinagkaitan Street amidst amoral
authorities. Her principles in life are mixed with personal interest,
sympathy, and empathy.

Setting: Story, At Pinagkaitan Street, Daytime and Nighttime hours.

Play, February 10, 2019 (Sunday) | 8:00AM | Librada Avelino Auditorium.

Summary of Plot:
The story started with the premeditated murder of Aaron, an alleged drug
addict, in a street named Pinagkaitan. This event is even followed by the two
found corpse of a female escort and a mentally ill young beggar that provokes
the journalist’s determination to seek the truth on the injustices that continues to
happen and be able to expose to the public the people responsible behind these
criminally liable acts. The meeting of the journalist and the police in-charge in this
 2

street and the two gunmen started the story’s most significant idea – that is “self
interests” that may come to us in different forms. While the journalist is
preoccupied with her goal to create interesting and outstanding news with these
extrajudicial killings, the police officer is somehow at ease to let these events
pass by perhaps because he covertly hold participation on such crimes. Since
the journalist cannot benefit anything from the police, she instructed a gunman to
kill him in exchange for a sum of money. On the other hand, the police also
commanded the other gunman to kill the journalist because she can be a
hindrance for them to continue their plans. The story ended with the death of
both the journalist and the police in-charge in the hands of two gunmen.

Major Ideas and Theme:

The major ideas and the theme of the story evolve from the social issues
in connection with the country’s peace and order situations which are relevant
and timely nowadays. The first major idea presents the killing of a person by
governmental authorities or individuals without the sanction of any
judicial proceeding or legal process. The story reevaluates the President
Duterte’s “war on drugs” which paved its way to the second major idea which is
the corruption among abusive authoritative individuals that delays the country’s
development and manipulates the individual rights of any person. Since the
events happened in this story evolved from the self interests of all the characters,
the themes of this play are revenge, rivalry, temptation, discovery, hatred, and
injustice.

BODY:

1. Did the movie hold your interest? Explain.

The play is interesting because the story itself enables the viewers to not
only sympathize on the miserable experiences of the characters but also to have
the ability to understand and share the feelings with them completely. It
influences my interests because there are many perspectives that I agree. For
instance, the journalist said “Ang mabuting mamamahayag ay nagmamasid ng
balita, hindi gumagawa ng balita”. I agree to this statement completely because
on this day where everyone thinks that they are right, ignorance of the truth can
make it worse.

2. What was your reaction to the production design, props, dialogue/script,

sounds and other features of the play?
The production design of the play is related to the expected visual aspects
of the production in connection to the setting and theme of the story. This is an
excellent technique because it makes the story appealing and more convincible.
The props used in this play are simple and ideal. The resourcefulness of the
stage designers to use recyclable materials is showcased on the props used by
the characters. The dialogue and script of the characters are full of wisdom. The
manner on how the characters deliver their lines possesses conviction in which
empowers them to be in their full character. The sound effects emphasize the
 3

action, mood, and feeling of the scene that makes the viewers react positively.
However, there are some technical problems on the microphone that happened
which disallow one character to deliver her line completely hearable.

3. What did you notice about the performances and the casting?
The casting of the characters in this story is excellently matched with their
physical features. Their individual roles are justified because it is easy for them to
perform without being hesitant of their actions and uncertain on their emotions.

4. What stands out as especially effective or especially weak?

The use of a romantic-comedy (rom-com) scenes in a story in which
theme are tragedy and crime is effective especially when the audience is young
people. It avoids dull moments and redirects them to focus on the story.
However, the long duration of dialogue made by two characters seems to be
uninteresting with the students especially there when there are technical
problems in the sound system.

5. Compare this to the other plays you had watched.

This play is different from other plays that I had watched because it
evolves on a modern concept in which I can relate. The other plays that I had
watched are all about heroes, legends, and fantasy.

CONCLUSION:

6. Will this play appeal to viewers of a particular age or with particular

interests?
KALSADA will be appealing to other viewers of my age because it will help
them to understand the reality of the events reported in the news every day. They
will learn to weigh the pros and cons of the programs that our government is
implementing because of such events that disrupt the individual human rights
and justice. They will also be able to construct their own views and be able to
question some ideas on whether an action is right or wrong. Lastly, they will also
learn to evaluate the reliability and credibility of information available on media.

7. Did the play give you insights into human issues or stir your emotions?
Explain.
KALSDA plays an important role in human life which is determined by the
individual perception, which is usually subject to that individual's values, beliefs,
and culture. In the perspective of the journalist Trisha Hernandez, I still see the
man’s effort to bring justice in our society despite individual interests. Through
paper and pen, her ability to expose the problems in the government, in the
media, and in our own communities encourages us not to be blind men of our
own time. The human issue of living with integrity means not settling for less,
speaking the truth, behaving in ways that are in harmony with our personal
values, and making choices based on what is right.