Giyera (Tagalog for War) is a musical play written and composed by Music Director: Henry Torres of Music Repertoire in Pinole, California. The story is set around the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II. Giyera is an original musical play set in a small Filipino village during the Japanese invasion, and is written in opera style (zarzuela), with no dialogue - the story is told completely through song. It was created with the dual purpose of providing local youth with the experience of theater and performance, while celebrating Filipino culture in a way that is accessible to a mainstream audience.
Contents
Giyera the musical scene 16
Characters
Main:
Supporting:
- Isabelle
- Carmen
- Laura
Performances
Giyera was first performed in 2005 at the Dean Lesher Regional Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, California. It was more professionally performed at the Cowell Theater, part of the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco, California. The 2008 production was performed at the Fetterly Playhouse in Vallejo, California on October 26, 2008. Giyera is now on its third run with a new cast as part of its 10th year anniversary. The musical returns to the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, California at 7:30pm on Tuesday, November 24 and Wednesday, November 25th of 2015.
Original Cast
The 2008 Production
10th Anniversary Cast
Plot
"When a loving couple's destiny is disrupted by war, the man finds himself in the midst of another woman. When a death binds him to the woman he barely knows, his heart is in another world. And the story of love in a time of war unfolds in Giyera the musical".
In a Philippine provincial town named Santa Maria, Carlo asks the Mayor's permission to marry his daughter, Lisa. The town is overjoyed for the upcoming wedding and starts to celebrate the engagement, but they are unaware that the Japanese have landed in the islands of the Philippines and will soon overrun the town of Santa Maria. Carlo soon finds himself accused of assassinating the Japanese general Kato and must flee to a remote island where he takes refuge with a "fisherman" named Edwin, his wife Ana, and their child. Meanwhile, Lisa remains in Santa Maria where she and the other townspeople must find unity and strength to endure the harsh occupation. Soon, everything will change in the lives of the people of Santa Maria... and also the lives of all the people in the Philippine islands...