The retro party that is 'Bongga Ka 'Day: The Annie Batungbakal Musical'
When the curtain went up for Bongga Ka 'Day: The Annie Batungbakal Musical on opening night, the question that was repeatedly asked on social media weeks before seemed to hang heavy in the air: Would Atasha Muhlach be great as Annie?
Finding out was a blast.
Muhlach plays Annie Batungbakal, a young woman who dreams of becoming a fashion designer while working as a dispachadora or sales clerk at a floundering fashion boutique in Manila. It seems she's on her way to fulfilling her dream when it all crashes down, leaving her to dig deep to find her way again.
The entire show is based on the music of the 1970s Filipino band Hotdog. (Fun fact: Before Hotdog pioneered the Manila sound genre, it was a rock band called RedFox.) Annie's story pans out through Hotdog classics, including Manila, Pers Lab, Ikaw Ang Miss Universe ng Buhay Ko, Annie Batungbakal, Beh, Buti Nga, and the Pinoy disco anthem Bongga Ka 'Day.
Muhlach first emerged onstage in a bedazzled red outfit dripping with the '70s vibe. There was the sense that she was a little nervous, which was understandable given that it was her first night headlining her first musical, and it was in a 1,500-seat theater. She did the dance moves, hit the notes, and delivered the lines as practiced; no problems there. But she appeared to need the first few scenes to serve as her warm-up before she could catch her groove.
A few songs in, though, Muhlach visibly started to relax and have fun, gradually wading into her character. That was when she earned her sequins and bell bottoms.
Bongga's supporting cast provided the boost, particularly Air Paz as Suzy Batungbakal, Annie's mother, Gerhard Krysstopher as Annie's dispatsador friend, and John Lapus in the dual role of club owner Tarurit and classic layabout Tito Tambay. It was a pleasure to watch Jackie Lou Blanco sing and bring her veteran stage presence as Aurora Pasion, Annie's boss. Two-thirds of Annie's love triangle were both seasoned performers, and it showed: KD Estrada as the childhood friend/unrequited lover Burn, and Sam Concepcion as the dandy object of desire Romer.
In most stage productions, the performances make up just half of the entire show. The other half is collectively delivered by the music, set, costumes, and tech elements. Bongga's creative crew brought it on in a big way.
In particular, Ohm David's articulated set design dominated the stage of the Newport Performing Arts Theater with the colorful texture of the '70s. It was especially fun to see one piece of set open and fold out like a dollhouse. Costume designer Hershee Tantiado added more layers to the spectacle with her sequins, prints, and yards of fabric. One ensemble number in Bongga could have wiped out a textile stall in Divisoria.
Director Chris Millado wove everything together and knew when to tone it down to show off the iconic parts of '70s Manila—was that Remedios Circle?
Annie's story could have been tighter, though. It was told through songs Hotdog wrote decades before, and not as a single story. It must have been a chore for playwright Liza Magtoto to bind everything together to narrate one person's life.
Ultimately, Bongga achieved its goal, which was to deliver fun packaged in the glitter, grit, and sounds of retro Manila.
Full circle
On opening night, Muhlach's parents came in full support. Her brother Andres, who was in Spain then, would be watching with their parents another day, said the star's mother, Charlene Gonzales.
Headlining Bongga in that theater was especially sentimental for the Muhlach family, Gonzales said, because Muhlach's love for the performing arts started in the same theater at nine years old.
"Atasha first started here in Newport in her first theater play in The Sound of Music," Gonzales said in a pre-show interview. "So this is the first time coming back to Newport and PETA. It's a full-circle moment for her."
Muhlach's father, Aga Muhlach, knew his daughter was in her element as Annie.
"I'm excited. I wanna watch. I know Atasha. Kay Andres, ninerbiyos ako. Hindi ako ninenerbiyos kay Atasha," Aga told PhilSTAR L!fe. In January 2026, Andres made his stage debut as Adie in Bagets: The Musical, playing the role his father did, too, in the 1984 film Bagets, which the musical was based on.
"Alam niya 'to. [Atasha] knows this. I know her so well. Sparring partner ko 'yan. I've been quiet the whole time when she was being attacked," Aga added, referring to the backlash his daughter received after the announcement of the Bongga lead cast.
At curtain call, the audience could see Muhlach's triumph in her tears. But Bongga's visual feast was a whole-of-production win, too. Although many members of the cast and crew were too young to have listened to their original soundtrack live, they took the music and the lyrics, slipped in some modern tweaks, and got a whole generation interested again in the dynamism of Manila in the '70s.
'Bongga Ka 'Day: The Annie Batungbakal Musical' is currently running until Oct. 24, 2026 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater. Tickets are available at Ticketworld.
