Now in its second run at the Public Theater, the off-Broadway musical

Now in its second run at the Public Theater, the off-Broadway musical “Here Lies Love” traces the ascent, and descent, of Imelda Marcos from humble roots to becoming the first lady of the Philippines from 1965-1986. But something cast members noticed was the paucity of Filipinos in the audience.

Asian Journal’s Momar Visaya explains what happened when lead actor Jose Llana – who plays the role of Imelda’s husband, President Ferdinand Marcos – talked with friends about bringing more Filipinos to the show.

Thus came plans for Filipino Night. Tickets will be discounted (Filipinos love discounts, or haven’t you heard) and there will be food after the show (Filipinos love to eat…) and there will be picture-taking with the cast (Filipinos love taking photos). It was set.

That momentous and magical moment happened one night last month.

That evening—in a rare occurrence—Filipinos and Fil-Ams comprised the majority of the audience.

It was a sight to behold, something that excited Jose and his cast-mates. “It is very special for us to tell this story to America,” Jose said as he welcomed and thanked everyone who supported Filipino Night. “When you go home, talk to your parents about this, about this part of history. Ask them, ‘what happened?’”

To many Filipinos who left for the U.S. during the “dark part of Philippine history,” the story is a part of the country’s past they would rather not talk about. Llana, however, wanted to jumpstart a conversation about learning from history and not repeating past mistakes. And it would help, he thought, to start that conversation by attracting the younger generation to the musical and teaching them about the history of their family’s country.

Jaygee Macapugay, the understudy for the role of Imelda, talks about “private jokes” with Filipino audience members, and discusses the stark contrast in community turnout between the 2009 production of “Imelda: A New Musical,” in which she starred in the lead role, and “Here Lies Love.” Find out what she said at Asian Journal.