“Pinatay si Mayor!” is a musical satire showing how townsfolk from Barangay Talon Pikit get so fed up with the local leader that they elect an animal—a promising pig—as mayor. But the pig ends up dead before it can assume office.
Who killed the new mayor? That’s the mystery behind this political whodunit written by Rody Vera with dramaturgy by Antonio Contreras, and directed by Raffy Tejada of the Harlequin Theater Guild, De La Salle University’s theater company.
“It is a funny play that encourages voters to choose wisely, and to be vigilant after the elections,” Tejada says during the recent launch in La Salle. “It is a follow-up to the production ‘Rizal Is My President’ which we staged during the previous presidential election and was watched by then presidential candidates.”
“Pinatay si Mayor!” stars Mae Paner (also known as Juana Change) as the corrupt incumbent Mayor Vangie Palaban, the principal suspect in the killing. Harlequin Theater Guild members make up the cast and production staff. Tejada says the play especially targets students and young voters, and politicians as well.
“It is an accessible, easy-to-understand play and we intend to stage it in different locations to reach more voters,” Tejada says.
Irene C. Perez