Director Tuxqs Rutaquio on working with Elijah Canlas, Gen X–Gen Z clashes, and reshaping a breakout performance for the stage.
The stage play version of “About Us But Not About Us” isn’t just about bridging characters onstage, but also about bridging generations backstage.
In an exclusive interview with radar Entertainment, director Tuqs Rutaquio jokingly pointed out the generational gap on set, with Elijah Canlas often caught between Gen X humor and jokes that sail right past the older cast.
The project also stars Romnick Sarmenta, Andoy Ranay and Epy Quizon.
“Elijah is the youngest. When we crack Gen X jokes, he doesn’t always relate. But when he jokes around, we’re the ones going, ‘Ha? Ano ‘yon?’” said the award-winning director and Benilde Theater Arts chair.
For someone of his stature, Rutaquio has spent decades building an illustrious career in the industry. Yet he admits that working with Elijah for the first time has presented its own set of challenges, particularly in ensuring clarity during scene work.
“I’m very careful with Elijah because everything has to be crystal clear, especially when it comes to changes in character onstage. This is my first time working with him, so we’re still getting used to each other during scene work,” he shared.
Canlas reprises his role as Lancelot Guinto, a literature student/protégé of Ericson (played by Romnick Sarmenta) and central character to the story of the film-turned-play “About Us But Not About Us.”
Given their first project together, Rutaquio had to temper how his direction and styles worked with Canlas and their characterization of Lance.
On the complexity between Elijah and Lancelot
“Iba ‘ang character ni Lancelot. It’s so hard to figure out. Ambiguous siya and yet, you know that he’s scheming, Kailangan swabe, ‘yong hindi mo agad mafi-figure out.”
To achieve this, Rutaquio wanted to strip away what he saw as a Generation Z-distinct speech cadence from Canlas, to serve the text and depth of the performance.
“Elijah has a speech pattern that you sometimes need to break to make the lines more interesting to listen to,” he explained, noting how meticulous the process is in shaping a character’s transformation right before the audience’s eyes.
Ultimately, this rigor is essential for Rutaquio, believing that must physically and/or emotionally ‘jolt’ the viewer. With how the stage adaptation fleshed out Eric’s partner Marcus (played alternately by Epy Quizon and Andoy Ranay), the director stresses how amplifying the material’s psychological tension live onstage is different than film shoots.
Whether through the complexity of generational dynamics in rehearsals or the breaking of speech patterns onstage, the goal remains the same — to ensure the play doesn’t just tell a story, but leaves a lasting, terrifying impact.
“About Us But Not About Us” is officially set to premiere on Valentine’s Day (Feb 14), running until March 8 at the Power Mac Center Spotlight Blackbox Theater, Circuit Makati.
Iba ‘ang character ni Lancelot. It’s so hard to figure out. Ambiguous siya and yet, you know that he’s scheming, Kailangan swabe, ‘yong hindi mo agad mafi-figure out.
Tuxqs Rutaquio
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