Review: Waka Waka Production's 2AM Parades a Midnight Spectacle

(Review by Nabila 'Hana' Hananti, editing by Rakaputra Paputungan)

On August 24th 2024, LSPR Institute’s Performing Arts Communication Batch 25 “Waka Waka Production” brought 2AM: The Musical to the stage of TIM’s Teater Besar. Directed by Amelia Angeliqa with the assistance of Excel Yeremia, bringing forth four main characters, six supporting ones, ten ensemble members, and 15 original songs, they delivered 2AM for their final 6th-semester assignment for the subject ‘Plan & Production Management’.

It starts with the introduction of a mysterious theatre troupe named 2AM. We then meet our main character, Brielle. She’s a young woman who yearns to become Broadway performer. Unfortunately, she had gotten into an accident that made her an orphan and put her in a wheelchair, plunging her into despair. In her sleep, she dreams of joining the renowned 2AM theatre, where her wish to become a star comes true. She even manages to make love blossom between her and the manager of the troupe. Facing trials and tribulations, Brielle discovers that she can still pursue her dream and carry on living with a newfound spirit.

2AM: The Musical was a massive production and it’s clear that Waka Waka Production worked hard to make it come true – with spectacular colors through the lighting & set design, alongside the fun choreography done in marvellous costumes. To top it all off, everything complements the incredible music delivered by the music director.

The visuals and audio were pleasing and extravagant, and they wrote the story for a good cause – inspiring disadvantaged dreamers. Unfortunately, their attempt at delivering this message mostly fell flat. The main character, Brielle, was toppled out of her wheelchair several times with indignity. And in the dreamland, she suddenly regained her ability to walk with no explanation, making for an awkward development.

Waka Waka Production tried to tell the reality of a disabled life – how it’s taxing that doing the most basic things requires extra effort from the disabled person. It contends that having one’s wings ripped off doesn’t stop one from taking to the sky. However, they focused too much on the mysterious theatre troupe and ended up neglecting the character Brielle and the narrative she found herself in.

The story could’ve highlighted the stark contrast between the idyllic 2AM dreamland and Brielle’s grim reality to better build up the emotional tension. Then, the appearance of the bizarre 2AM theatre would come as a pleasant surprise for both Brielle and the audience as she found herself in a fantastical world where she was able to reach her dream with her own two legs.

2AM’s songs were masterpieces. The arrangement brought forth all the emotions necessary for the scenes. But, once the melody stopped, the exposition was rather uninspiring to sit through. The jokes that worked were mostly situational: diegetic ones that the play’s characters themselves laughed at. 

I was seated front row in front of the orchestra and at some points, the audio felt unbalanced with several technical issues. At one point, Cathleen Rebecca’s (playing Camila Moore) mic fell off, but she saved it with her stage presence and confidence using a handheld mic that was delivered shortly after.

My main problem with 2AM comes with the main character, Brielle. Her actress, Amelia Angeliqa, should be applauded for playing the lead character as well as becoming the director and scriptwriter of the show. However, this wasn’t without consequences. The character Brielle had shaky writing and I found her rather hard to root for. At the end of Act 1, she begged the manager to cast her as the lead, and Brielle’s capability as a performer wasn’t showcased beforehand. Nobody knew she could act, sing, or dance until after she performed for a production that had sponsors at stake. The things she achieved in the dreamland didn't feel earned despite telling a story about resilience and hardwork.

The 2AM Theatre happened in her dream, and it was Brielle’s wake-up call so she’d continue chasing her dream in reality. However, even in that dream, her character came across as entitled. Despite her earlier disappointment in 2AM Theatre, she immediately switched her stance once she was able to walk in the dreamland and even got cast as the lead. She was right, and everyone else was wrong for being pessimistic. While Angeliqa’s directing was solid for the entirety of 2AM: The Musical, her writing of the character could use some more polishing and motivation.

It should also be noted that Brielle’s disability and whether she was actually in a dream weren’t mentioned at all up until the second act. It’s never quite explained what 2AM was and if what happened in her dream actually was true, even as Brielle’s love interest – Evan – sang a song about their eventual separation. This might be a deliberate artistic decision, but on the other hand it might baffle some audience members.

Once the end of the dream happened and Brielle woke up feeling refreshed with a newfound dream, I thought that the story was over, but no. 2AM: The Musical pleasantly trodded on until close to midnight, at a staggering three-hour runtime (and the show started late, so it was close to 11 PM once the show was finally over). I was amazed at how the performer’s energy didn’t drop even with it being very late at night. They ended with a midnight spectacle—one might say they ended it with a bang.

For a show with such an explicit social cause, 2AM: The Musical could have used a more nuanced approach to the character writing. That being said, Waka Waka Production still succesfully brought an overall incredible show that both was a feast to both eyes and ears.

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