MANILA, Philippines—Enter the world of Filipino puppet designer-maker and director, Kayla Teodoro, where stories are imbued with an extra layer of enchantment through the art of puppetry. Renowned for her creation of the life-sized Yubaba in the stage adaptation of Hayao Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away,” she now breathes life into “Life of Pi” through the intricate art of puppetry, as envisioned by the National Theatre of London.
Teodoro, also the artistic director of Puppet Theater Manila, reflects on her involvement in the West End production of “Life of Pi”: “I was fortunate enough to work on the show last year while it was on the West End. I took care of the puppets. I took care of the tiger, and all of the other big puppets. I also worked very closely with the puppeteers because I also helped run the show.”
Image Courtesy of The Cultural Center of the Philippines.
“Life of Pi,” an award-winning adaptation of Yann Martel’s best-selling novel, orbits around the story of Pi, a 16-year-old boy adrift on a lifeboat after a cargo ship’s tragic sinking. Pi’s companions on this nautical odyssey include a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan, and a Royal Bengal tiger.
In her role as a puppet assistant stage manager, Teodoro’s primary duty revolves around ensuring that the larger-than-life puppets are primed for each performance: “I helped make sure that puppets were in the right place at the right time. I made sure that when puppeteers needed help, I was there to assist them. All of the puppets really have to be in top-notch condition every night before the show.”
Image Courtesy of The Cultural Center of the Philippines.
Kayla expresses gratitude for the cultural depth her involvement in “Life of Pi” offered, as the production featured prominent South Asian talents, aligning with the story’s Indian roots. She reflects on the evolving landscape of Asian representation behind the scenes in the UK and the significance of collaborating with South Asian individuals in the cast.
Kayla highlights the relatively modest size of the puppetry community, particularly in the Philippines, the sole Southeast Asian nation without a traditional form of puppetry. Fueled by her passion, she founded Puppet Theater Manila, aiming to propagate the art of puppetry across the Philippines.
Driven by a commitment to elevate Filipino storytelling through puppetry, she underscores puppetry’s potential as a potent medium for conveying indigenous folklore, particularly for young audiences: “Thanks to puppetry, you now have an option on how to tell these stories – you could show children what an aswang or even what a Butanding looks like. And because the Philippines is so rich in indigenous materials and craftsmen, you can get everyone involved when it comes to telling stories through puppetry.”
Image Courtesy of The Cultural Center of the Philippines.
Juggling her responsibilities at Puppet Theater Manila with freelance work, Kayla dedicates time to teaching puppetry to children of all ages and directs puppetry for the Repertory Philippines musical. What began as a humble journey in set and costume design has blossomed into major projects, including adaptations of “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Spirited Away,” “Spitting Image,” “The Lion King,” and “Life of Pi.”
“Life of Pi” marks the inaugural production under the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ CCP National Theatre Live program, which seeks to bring the best of London’s National Theatre to Philippine screens and make international theater accessible to local theater enthusiasts, playwrights, artists, and the wider public.
Kayla emphasizes the program’s core objective: “That’s the most important to us – to make sure that Filipino audiences are seeing the capabilities of puppetry, and not only that, you also have artists, theater professionals, and film professionals who are now starting to embrace that.”
Through the CCP National Theatre Live program, the CCP, in collaboration with the National Theatre of London and Ayala Malls Cinema, introduces British theatrical excellence to the big screen, featuring nine world-class stage plays, all filmed in high-definition quality. These productions, originally performed in front of live theater audiences, are reimagined for the cinematic experience, allowing theater enthusiasts worldwide to partake in the magic.
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