LOLO'S LAST WAR Filipino WW2 Guerilla Play Will Be Performed Off-off-Broadway in December 2022

Around 260,000 Filipinos became guerillas in their local resistance in World War II. At present there are only a few thousand of these men and women left worldwide, and soon there will be no one from their generation left to tell their stories.

Filipino playwright Dennis Posadas would like to honor them with his new play Lolo's Last War, with a one night performance planned off-off-Broadway in NYC sometime in early December 2022.

Lolo means "grandfather" in Filipino, although there were both male and female guerillas in the local resistance. "The play is somewhat inspired by Tuesdays with Morrie, but with a different story, character motivations, and a World War II backstory," said Posadas. Posadas says he has met a few guerillas still alive with the strength of character that so few in the current generation have today. "A lot of that is distilled into the play, the common experiences of many guerillas during that time, and the hardships that they faced," he said.

Posadas's previous play, Admiral Montojo, was also performed off-off-Broadway last December 2018. Comparing his previous 2018 play to this new one, he says Lolo's Last War has less characters and is more intimate. "It focuses on the inner and outer conflicts of a dying old war veteran as he tries to find out what happened to his old flame during the War, and at the same time try to influence his grandson to pursue a path of public service before he passes away," he said.

Although there are some war flashbacks, the war is really more of a backstory for the current conflicts that the dying old man has to face. Generational gaps, differences in thinking and outlook, are explored in this play.

"It's a bittersweet tribute to an entire generation who had to sacrifice a part of their life during their time. I hope future generations will never forget their experience," Posadas said.