Wanlu the Ventriloquist: One Talented Entertainer!

Wanlu the Ventriloquist, with a soft puppet.

Wanlu the Ventriloquist gained fame a few years back when he won week after week on Channel 5's Talentadong Pinoy, until he was installed in the talent show's Hall of Fame.  Last Sunday, we had the chance to watch him live at the grand first birthday party thrown by Oliver and Jennie Diaz for their son Gonzo, at Wack Wack Country Club.  He was funny!  And one thing I really liked about him was his knack for making his act quite inclusive - and by that, I mean, by design, he appealed to everyone in the room, young and old, hosts and guests (and the yayas of the kids), ... even the waitstaff all stopped working and gathered in the wings, to savor his performance.  He is a certified celebrity and he put that star power to good use.  For instance, he knew he could get away with poking fun at the party hosts!!! 

Wanlu, making a human puppet out of the party host.

Wanlu did this to the celebrant's father, Oliver Diaz, who is normally very dignified in demeanor - and very professional-looking all the time. He invited Oliver to come up on stage to participate in his act,  and made him wear a ridiculous baby bonnet and transformed him into a human puppet.  It was hilarious!  I looked around and saw that everyone was riveted to the stage.  People at the far end of the room were standing to see the stage. Even my husband, who's normally inattentive at children's parties, found his way to the front of the stage where he sat on the floor next to Narra and Guijo by the kiddy chairs (that's where I sat too).  We had quite a few good laughs.

Narra and Oliver, enjoying Wanlu's performance.

I also loved seeing Oliver's wife Jennie, carrying the celebrant Gonzo, having a good laugh at her husband's puppet act.  It's good to see hosts enjoying their party, and not being harassed, or stressed, or too busy to be having fun. But with Wanlu, it seemed to me that everyone busy decided to take a break to make time to enjoy the show.  He had the audience in the palm of his hand. It must have been his aura - he had the presence of a star, who knew his worth.  It was also his comedic timing.  Delivery of lines is one thing, synchronizing this with the movement of puppets makes it more exciting - add to this the fact that his lips aren't moving as he speaks for his puppets - it's really fun to watch!

The party host Jennie, with the celebrant, Gonzo!

Wanlu encouraged the audience's participation many times throughout his performance. At one point he asked two yayas to come up on stage, and to my amazement, I saw Narra's new yaya, our latest household recruit named yaya Vanna, leaping up on stage!  Wanlu wore a half mask on yaya Vanna, and he manipulated the mechanism from behind, which created the hilarious illusion of a moving mouth.  Vanna was made to say things like "Ate, kunan mo naman ako ng picture o!" (please take my picture) and this line she directed at me, and I obediently took the photo of course!  Wanlu, through his puppetry, is able to get away with anything! And somehow, anyone he orders around through his puppets seems all too willing to comply!  That's part of his magic really, his personal magnetism. How can he get people to participate willingly? At many other children's parties, entertainers sometimes find it difficult to get people to ride along.

Wanlu, with Narra's new yaya Vanna to his right.

Wanlu's effect lasted long after the party.  Up to the next day, and the day after that, I could still hear the yayas and Narra talking about him and his puppet show.  For her participation in his show, yaya Vanna got to take home a DVD of Wanlu's performance at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.  When I took a peek at Narra's room yesterday afternoon, I saw that they were watching his show!  He's one talentadong Pinoy and I am so glad I got to see him live!  

Wanlu's son, performing with his marionette.

It seems Wanlu is passing on the knowledge to the next generation. Included in his act are "dance numbers" performed by his son who specializes in manipulating marionettes.  I very much appreciate what they are doing for indeed, there is room for more puppetry in our performing arts scene. From a historical standpoint, a century ago, puppetry was an integral part of theater life in Manila.  We had shadow theater called carillos offered regularly in the streets of the theater district near the port area. It is sad that those puppet shows have become all but extinct.  With Wanlu's commercial success, however, there is a good chance for puppetry to stage its comeback.  So I could only wish for Wanlu's puppetry arts to flourish all the more, and to inspire many others to follow in his path.

Related Posts:

Gonzo's Carnival Themed Party and What Makes a Grand Party Great Fun
http://nikki-mama.blogspot.com/2012/07/gonzos-carnival-themed-party-and-what.html

A Towering Carnival Cake and Custom Crafted Candy for Gonzo's 1st Birthday Party
http://nikki-mama.blogspot.com/2012/07/carnival-themed-cake-and-custom-crafted.html