In a not-so-surprising development, “Here Lies Love” is bidding adieu to Broadway, a demise met with mixed feelings. 

While it’s a feather in the cap for the Philippines to have a homegrown musical and an all-Filipino cast on the illustrious stage, one can’t help but ponder why the seats remained as empty as the promises of a politician.

Is Broadway fatigued with the Marcos saga, or have theater-goers rejected the notion of a theater experience without plush seats? Perhaps the Great White Way isn’t ready for a show that challenges the hegemony of cushioned comfort. 

Could it be that American audiences, accustomed to Les Misérables-style epics, find “Here Lies Love” a bit too shallow and a tad too brown?

Or, just maybe, the viral video of Lea Salonga cold-shouldering a fan had more impact than anticipated. Did her icy dismissal freeze the enthusiasm of potential theatergoers, leaving them colder than a New York winter? 

Whatever the reason, “Here Lies Love” is a testament to the fact that even a musical can’t escape the drama of Broadway politics. After all, “Miss Saigon” was met with protests when it first arrived in New York.

Megastar Sharon Cuneta recently took to social media to deny a shocking accusation: that she is, in fact, a manananggal, a mythical Filipino creature known for its ability to separate its upper torso to hunt for prey. Cuneta vehemently insisted that she’s not a manananggal and that her children are definitely not chickens. “No cockfights here,” she proclaimed, as if we were all eagerly awaiting her livestock updates.

It’s reassuring to know that our national superstar is not moonlighting as a supernatural being and that her offspring aren’t secretly feathered fowl. The world can finally breathe a sigh of relief.