No, this isn’t yet another online show made out of a whim, nor is it just all talk. Promising necessary points-of-view and perspectives to enrich the continuing conversation, this is shaping up to be a hard habit to break.
Before you start rolling your eyes at the prospect of yet another online show that promises to be different from the rest, listen up. Yes, it sure seems that everyone has fully been exercising their right to expression online, coloring outside the lines of tradition and figuring out a way to cope and adapt to the collective context of crisis, but the fact of the matter is, there is room for everybody to talk—and when people want to speak, it is proper for us to at least listen, especially when it stands to matter the most.
Chikahan, chismisan, conversation—here lies the beauty with Baklang Baklang Show. Packaged as something surprising or shocking, it doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t, which is in its heart a coming together of friends on Sunday to talk about anything and everything that has happened in the past week and more. A distinct and diverse assemblage of like-minded and highly opinionated industry standouts, the goal for them aside from the obvious entertainment is to inform and inspire.
“Humor helps us process the experience and laughing is a form of collective therapy,” explains Dax Carnay, CCO and actor. “All these webinars and online shows seek information sharing, not so much on starting the conversation.” Baklang Baklang Show intends to encompass all that, shedding light on the lens of the LGBTQIA+ community, but most importantly the greater human condition. “Yes, the online show is from the perspective of people from the LGBTQIA+ community, but what makes this unique is we are reclaiming our voices,” says award-winning director and writer, Rod Singh.
This isn’t an effort of spectacle by any means, because while the surface may have been scratched by many, the five cornerstones of the show are bent on making something that truly matters. “Fearless,” this is what singer, model, project manager, and club promoter Paulo Castro wants you to look forward to from them. “This is also one of the few LGBTQIA+ online shows that isn’t a party or drag centered. We have a segment for entertainment, but this is more anchored on the exchange of ideas and opinions. We hope to share whatever wisdom we’ve learned in our lives.” Inclusion sits at the heart of Baklang Baklang Show, which is something that they hold near and dear, moving simply past just advocating and setting into action with their audience. “Hopefully the audience, especially the younger ones, find a voice in at least one of us and become encouraged to live their lives with authenticity. I’m not saying we’ll always be right, but if someone finds the strength to fight for what they believe in because of our conversations…That would be awesome,” continues Paulo, which is something host Peabo Bryson Orilla agrees to. “Awareness. I want to learn from the audience and I want them to learn something from me,” he furthers.
“[With] more diverse voices in the community. I think it’s about time to set the tone,” continues Rod on the premiere of the online show. Steering it from the fleeting internet speak, Baklang Baklang Show believes that while there is weight to their points-of-view individually, together, they can make an even more significant and substantial change. “Iba pa rin ‘yung discussion talaga kesa sa we’re voicing out individually. Mas may resolve kung lima o apat kayo leading the narrative.”
Speaking not for themselves, but for the greater community and humanity they are part of, the union of Baklang Baklang Show is that relief, that exhale we desperately need now and in the foreseeable future. Yes, there are many voices, but there still exists a void that needs to be filled, and this is where the five step in to make sense of. “I believe that in any message that we want to send across, consistency is the key. It is easy to create noise and let people know about your beliefs on certain issue but the only moment that it will start to matter is when it sticks,” says actor and self-confessed baklang kanal and barriotic Mother Kepler, Inah Evans. “So, we have to make sure that we are consistent in not just being a noise, but actually creating a change so it will have a ripple effect for the next generations to come.”
Lofty and ideal as it may sound, it is the honest truth for Baklang Baklang Show, which can be anything it needs to be for its audience. “Pwede kaming cooking show, pwede rin kaming makeup tutorial, at pwede rin kaming social commentary,” details Dax Carnay. Here, they are essentially baring themselves to each other and to an audience eagerly waiting for something fierce, fabulous, and fresh. In our pursuit of an escape from the reality we are all facing, finding distractions when and where possible, by all accounts, including a personal preview of a conversation that ran far longer than expected, this is more than just an online show to cut through the noise, but a forthcoming habit that will break perceptions.
Brace yourselves, because true change is coming, mga ka-BBS. No B.S., promise.
