Christine Allado and Matt Blaker
The Bodyguard The Musical runs until Oct. 19, 2025, Friday-Sunday performances, at The Proscenium Theater, Rockwell, Estrella St., Makati.
Yes, by the time Rachel sings I Have Nothing, gently and vulnerable at first then intense and insanely high-pitched later, you get goosebumps. It triggers not only your memory of an era, but more so, an emotion from it—the ‘90s, which Whitney Houston owned.
Tim Yap and Matt Blaker
“How did I do? Did I do well?” Christine Allado asked us after the show, like an anxious but friendly college student. Tim Yap pulled us to have a photo with her. The star of the night was that unassuming and humble, just eager to know the reception of her home country.
In truth, she didn’t just “do well” that preview night of September 25, Christine Allado owned The Bodyguard The Musical—a glorious homecoming of this Filipino-British theater artist who’s been making an impact on the West End for years now. Her countrymen finally experienced that voice, that is as soft and mellifluous as it is high and piercing, lung power for both drama and musical, and honest acting that draws you in. Plus—she can dance to seduce.
We have another global star, one good reason to feel pride of country—at a time when the Filipino is in dire need of reasons to feel proud about a Philippines overrun by corrupt politicians.
The Bodyguard The Musical opened the Proscenium Theater at Rockwell, a production by 9 Works Theatrical, last September 25, and to the general audience September 26. The 780-seat Proscenium Theater is now the metro’s newest performing arts venue with state-of-the-art facilities. Apparently Rockwell made a wise, popular choice of an opening production, even if it’s not the latest from West End or Broadway.
Directed by Robbie Guevara, The Bodyguard The Musical, the 2012 musical by Alexander Dinelaris based on the iconic 1992 movie, is so Pinoy in the sense that it is music the Pinoy would love to belt out in a heartbeat. It resonates with the Filipino who believes he/she/they can sing better than anyone else in the world—a belief that is not a total exaggeration, really. And the Rockwell audience rose to the expectation—by curtain call, they were singing and dancing with the cast (throwback to the Mamma Mia! Manila run).
The earlier doubt that it might not draw in the GenZ audience was rather premature
The Bodyguard has the iconic music of an era—the songs that became the hallmark of the ‘90s but which also cascaded down to the younger generations. The earlier doubt that it might not draw in the GenZ audience was rather premature—GenZ is into retro and has, at the very least, a curiosity about the past more than the millennial has; GenZ is not in full denial of the past. (And we spotted GenZs in the audience.) Its story and POV might not be in sync with today’s empowered generation (“I am nothing, nothing, nothing, if I don’t have you”—hello?) whose self-identity is fluid yet inviolate. But then its music is its instinctive, innate draw.
After all, The Bodyguard has so many iconic songs of the ‘90s that it’s a challenge to find another musical with such load of hits: Saving All My Love for You, Run to You, How Will I Know, I Will Always Love You, I Have Nothing, I’m Every Woman, One Moment in Time, I Wanna Dance With Somebody, among others.
Director Robbie Guevara wasn’t content just to ride on the strength and popularity of this pop music landmark; he brought it to higher standards by harnessing the creativity of a formidable cast of Filipino and foreign artists in a production that was a visual feast, full of high energy, yet with tightly woven story.
Allado with formidable dance ensemble
To Allado’s Rachel is Matt Blaker’s Frank Farmer the bodyguard. A marquee name from West End himself, Blaker became an instant hit with the Filipino audience with his looks (he was mobbed in the after-show meet), but then later into the musical, the charisma he gave the role grew on them. His karaoke scene simply brought the house down; you must anticipate it.
Guevara didn’t pander to popular taste, when he could just have. He not only retold but also updated an old narrative by giving it creative currency. The story of The Bodyguard is so pre-digital, as in a physical bodyguard, a series of threats done in—print (paste-up notes)! That is now kid stuff compared to the viral bullying and stalking today’s celebrities are vulnerable to (driving many a young star to suicide). So how do you make the plot relatable to the GenZ and millennial? (Thirty-year-old Christine Allado was only three years old when The Bodyguard became a Whitney Houston-Kevin Costner blockbuster.)
Guevara weaponized the cast’s sheer artistry, the enduring power of Whitney Houston music…. he knew how to use an influencer like Tim Yap
Guevara weaponized the sheer artistry of his cast, the enduring power of the Whitney Houston music, and the suspenseful twists of the plot; nobody, young or septuagenarian, could resist a good scare. He knew how to turn it into a techno thriller (thank god for LED)—but which people could sing along (in the quiet of their minds at least, during the show).
And Guevara knew how to use an influencer like Tim Yap to trigger audience response. Playing Sy Spector, Rachel’s producer/publicist (the equivalent of today’s brand creator), Yap is not one to fear treading any path, certainly not theater, his early love (he was a product of Repertory Theater workshops). The audience —three-fourths of whom must be his friends, colleagues or acquaintances—would react audibly every time he walked onto the scene, their ears open to his every line. Honestly, if you ask us, he did his part well, the comic foil of the moment. Tim is always a multi-hyphenate in the making.
Elian Santos as Fletcher and Sheena Palad as Nicki Marron
Sheena Palad as Nicki, Rachel’s older sister, slayed it—she sings, and how. She had the intensity to draw empathy to her character, while infusing romance into the story.
Matt Blaker as Frank Farmer and CJ Navato as Ray Court
The cast proved once again why the Filipino artist owns the global stage. Vien King, CJ Navato, John Joven Uy, Jasper John Jimenez are so native to their roles. They showed natural chemistry with Rachel, the diva that Allado performed with a potent blend of musicality and seduction. Our very own made Whitney Houston’s character gritty, not ditzy. Perfect for this millennium, goodbye to the ‘90s. (Hair and makeup is by Elliza Aurelio, a millennial herself.)
Daniel Bartolome’s musical direction? You couldn’t ask for more. It left you hooked to your Spotify even the day after.
Jasper John Jimenez as Toni Scibelli and Sheena Palad as Nicki Marron
Just in case you missed out on the story all these decades—The Bodyguard is about a celebrity whose life comes under threat by a stalker, a psychopath obsessed with her. Rachel Marron is at the peak of celebrityhood when she gets death threats surreptitiously. Her team has to hire a bodyguard, Frank Farmer, a dour, taciturn former Secret Service agent. The chemistry between the uncompromising protector and the uncooperative protectee evolves in the story. Their romance generates the swoon—and the suspense. So there.
Rachel is the role associated with Whitney Houston way beyond her death. She immortalized it, to put it tritely.
And now comes—Christine Allado!
Christine Allado and Matt Blaker lead curtain call.
See for yourself. You can’t miss The Bodyguard The Musical running at the Proscenium Theater at Rockwell until Oct. 19, 2025. https://premier.ticketworld.com.ph/shows/show.
