There’s life in the old warhorse yet. She will not be put out to pasture despite what the play’s director said last year.

The monster hit “Rak of Aegis” by the Philippine Educational Theater Association (Peta), written by Liza Magtoto, directed by Maribel Legarda and showcasing the music of the rock band Aegis, is back. This time, the show boasts of a slew of talents from the performing arts and show business, who have chalked up impressive achievements here and abroad.

These include Randy Santiago, Noel Cabangon, Rody Vera (the son of Ka Dencio in the 1984 classic film “Sister Stella L.”), Bayang Barrios, heartthrob Derrick Monasterio, and Jenine Desiderio (“Miss Saigon”). Then there are the young and old reliables like Isay Alvarez, Robert Seña, Aicelle Santos, Myke Salomon, Kim Molina, Kakai Bautista and Jerald Napoles.

This was announced in a recent press conference at Peta Theater Center, with National Artist Ryan Cayabyab of the Organisasyon ng mga Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM) as special guest.

The musical play is about Aileen (Santos), a talented singer who dreams of fame and of being on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” so that she can inform the world about the plight of her exploited, perennially flooded community. She is pursued by two hunks Tolits and Kenny (Salomon and Monasterio, respectively). “We have evolved in terms of singing, acting,” Santos said.

Referring to the partnership between Peta and OPM, Cayabyab said, “It’s a very good exchange. Peta has been helping us. There are steps leading to bigger ideas which we can use for original Philippine music. This is what we see in the partnership.”

Director Legarda said that they keep things fresh by changing up the cast, introducing new faces. “It’s only natural for Filipinos to love musical theater. A lot of people want to see it. If we keep on changing the combination of people, it will remain in the memory. And we want it to be remembered. It’s something we do well, and we want to make it better.” —CONTRIBUTED

“Rak of Aegis” has had hundreds of shows in the past five years. This run from July 5 to Sept. 29 consists of 70 more. It’s copresented by OPM and the Philpop MusicFest Foundation. Tel. 0917-5765400.