In theory, a movie like The Bodyguard should lend itself naturally to being adapted for the stage. The original 1992 Mick Jackson film is broad entertainment that leaves plenty of room for updates and changes today—telling the story of a seasoned bodyguard reluctantly accepting an assignment to protect a pop star being targeted by a stalker. Meanwhile, lead actress Whitney Houston’s original soundtrack provides an accessible, cross-generational entry point, especially among Filipinos.
It’s a property both familiar and malleable enough to make it a naturally safe choice as inaugural show for the Proscenium theater at Rockwell.
However, like its overly cautious titular protagonist, safety is the sole priority of this production by 9 Works Theatrical, at the cost of greater emotion or personality. This musical stays stubbornly within narrow limits and passes up nearly every chance to tell a more interesting story, relying solely on the established power of its songs.
To be fair, Houston’s music can’t but be a spectacle in itself, the late artist’s anthems both highly emotional and technically intricate (something this Bodyguard honors most sincerely in an overlong but very Pinoy karaoke scene).
In the lead role of pop star Rachel Marron, Christine Allado (supported by a spotless orchestra and musical direction by Daniel Bartolome) commits to Houston’s runs, growls, and vocal acrobatics with supreme polish. As Rachel’s overshadowed sister Nicki, Sheena Lee Palad brings a striking emotional texture to songs like Saving All My Love for You and Run to You—complementing Allado’s sheer precision in a way that almost reflects their characters’ relationship.
But as reliable as Houston’s songs are, it can’t help but feel like a major missed opportunity that the musical barely attempts to rearrange or recontextualize them for the show. The songs are memorable only for how they’re performed as Whitney Houston songs, not for how they enhance the story or deepen characters. And many times, it feels as if the production is pushing through the dialogue simply out of obligation to get to the next musical numbers, which often feel totally isolated from the narrative anyway.
Even with all its flash, there’s a sense that The Bodyguard is afraid of offending anybody. That attitude can be seen even in Robbie Guevara’s direction and Mio Infante’s production design, which do well to literally signify different locations through clean, tidy sets and blocking, but ultimately make the world of the musical feel far too small. Rachel’s big performances are lively and choreographed with a variety of styles by Arnold Trinidad, but visually there’s nothing here that convinces us that Rachel is one of the most popular pop stars of her time with her own brand or style.
Only when the musical wanders into darker territory—mostly with its disturbed stalker antagonist (played by Vien King)—does it allow itself to be more expressive with its craft, through more intensely choreographed moments and a shadowy set built far into the background.
Still, these instances are few and far between, and Guevara mostly insists on never having the perspectives of Rachel and the bodyguard Frank (Matt Blaker) intersect in interesting ways. Frank is either nowhere to be seen or standing plainly off to the side, while Rachel performs—another complete literalization of their dynamic that’s devoid of tension and does nothing to sell the supposed romance blooming between the two.
The pop star and the bodyguard
It doesn’t help that Allado and Blaker either aren’t given the space to develop chemistry or just can’t seem to create a good rapport between their characters. Blaker proves in the karaoke scene and during the encore performance that he’s perfectly capable of holding his own vocally and displaying great charisma—but the rest of the show, he’s restricted to enunciating flat dialogue and stoically positioning himself like an action figure. Allado is certainly more expressive, but the script reduces Rachel into a generic, vapid character whose motivations behind sustaining her music career don’t feel rooted in anything that substantial.
The world that The Bodyguard inhabits is ripe for exploration; celebrity, show business, and para-social relationships are all fertile ground for deeper insight, especially as it brings the story to this age of social media.
Unfortunately, the production is content with keeping these themes as little more than window dressing, while also only giving faint contours of being a romance or a thriller—leaving this show without momentum or a sense of structure.
In theory, this all could have worked much better. But the finished product is stuck merely as the idea of a safe, inoffensive vehicle for its music, and little else.
“The Bodyguard” runs until Oct. 19, 2025 at The Proscenium, Rockwell, Makati City. Tickets are available at Ticketworld.com.ph.
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