From the moment the lights go up on the World Premiere of Bailiwick's Mahal by resident playwright Danny Bernardo, there is something instantly engaging about this transplanted family from the Philippines and the cultural divide that almost shatters their relationships. Bernardo's story takes us through the generational differences of the Reyes family, whose patriarch transplants his family to America in the hopes of a better life for his children. Each sibling, approximately born a decade apart, has their own internal struggles in filtering and balancing the American way of life while coping with the loss of their mother, who by all counts, was the foundation of this family unit.
This is a family on the verge of collapse and through Erica Weiss' precise and passionate direction, you are at all times invested at the outcome of Reyes'. And what a ride they take you on. The youngest, Mikey (Kevin Matthew Reyes in a standout performance) is dealing with bonding issues via his new boyfriend Tim (the affable Patrick Byrnes), whom he met on Grindr; Mari (played to perfection by Kate Garassino), is the attorney sister who has taken it upon herself to keep the family together; Roberto, Jr. (Karmann Bajuyo), the eldest sibling who is caught in-between two cultures and doesn't quite fit into either; Roberto (Joseph Anthony Foronda, who keeps proving he is one of our finest actors), is the father who is as misunderstood as he is misogynistic; then there is Kim (played by Jillian Jocson in a truly heartfelt performance), the imported girlfriend of Roberto, Jr., who has an agenda of her own and finally Kendall (the sensational Blair Robertson) who gets thrown into the malay of the Reyes family, with hilarious results.