Today is the birthday of Jonbel, one of the O Boys and one of O Bar's resident choreographers. I wanted to write something about him for his birthday, but that really means talking about the O Boys as a group because their story is forever intertwined with his. And as someone who has been documenting O Bar through photos and videos ever since Tobie started bringing me to the bar, I have a unique historical record to go through. And this was done through a series of questions I found myself asking.
Pardon the coming nostalgia - I always get mushy around the time of our anniversary (which is this weekend) and the O Bar anniversary in December.
My oldest selfie with Jonbel is from 2018, which reflects when I was conscious of his contributions to the bar and wanted to get a photo. And that was harder then since the O Boys didn't actually go around for tips all that often, so you'd mainly only see them on stage. But Google Photos revealed to me that I have photos of him performing at O dating all the way back to 2013 in the 2nd O Bar Ortigas branch. But back then he was just another face among the rotating roster of backup dancers who were supporting the O Divas.
So I tried to go through my media collection to figure out a bit of a timeline. The backup dancers didn't really have much of a public identity until 2017 when some O Bar event posters would mention the show would feature "The O Divas & Boys". At the time I would label my few videos as featuring the O Dancers since I didn't know any better. But it wasn't until late 2017 that one would sporadically see "O Boys" as a distinct performing group on the event posters. Heck, they didn't have photos as a group in the promotional materials until 2022!
I cannot remember when I started to pay more attention to Jonbel's performances. But I do know that at some point, I asked Rupert what his name was and he proudly told me about him. He was among O Bar's Performers of the Year for 2017 and got a special event in January 2018 and I'm pretty sure I knew of him by then since we made sure to attend. And I even took a few video clips of that show, which was more the exception than the rule back then given my technological limitations.
So it was after nearly a year of actually knowing who he was before I even got to engage with him directly enough with a photo. Funny how that works out.
2018 was a big year of build-up and you can see that I started taking a lot more videos. And I started to mention the O Boys as a group instead of just the "dancers" in my video descriptions as Tobie and I were really rooting for them. 2019 was even bigger because that was the first time O Boys R.A. and Jonbel both got birthday shows - something that had been limited to just the O Divas until that point. In addition, the 2019 Liberation Party was the first time that Jonbel was listed among the choreographers for the show in the promotional materials - a well-deserved credit for sure!
So the pandemic was a very painful interruption of the bar's momentum and we had to find a way to get through things as best we could. I remember writing blog posts feeling bad for all the performers - the O Divas, the O Boys, and the O Ledge - as they were out of work during that time. Everyone had to get creative to find ways to make ends meet and I remember some had even taken on retail or fast-food jobs, which just got me worried that we'd never get everyone back together at the bar,
When things started to open up after the lockdown, most came back, but it was a different world. Social distancing limitations meant fewer performers on stage at any time, thus we couldn't have the ambitious, big production numbers with everyone on stage due to safety precautions. But we were still happy to see the boys back on stage even in limited numbers.
Fast-forward to today and the O Boys are stronger than ever. There have been some roster changes, but I suppose that's inevitable, but the group still has a solid core that persists under Jonbel's leadership and guidance (but he'll probably deny it). And we continue to celebrate them and their efforts because they are truly worth celebrating.
Why are we so O Boy-obsessed? Well, for one thing, they work really hard - just as hard as the O Divas do. Drag queens get a lot more attention because they're the star attraction that brings people into the bar - that is very true. But the O Boys really round out the performances and help build hype and energy when they join the queens on stage. They have to learn way more dances than others and need to go through some pretty quick costume changes to support the different queens in their performances night after night. But they don't get as many tips or accolades because that's sort of an inevitability of being in a supporting role. They get their time in the spotlight, but I don't know if everyone appreciates their contributions as much as we do.
Our support for the O Boys doesn't make us better people or anything like that. If you review the timeline I've presented above, it took me some 4-5 years before I even knew Jonbel's name, although I remember having more interactions with some of the other backup performers at one time or another. But we have learned to appreciate O Bar's unique performance productions as a whole, and thus the love extends to everyone who puts in the work night after night to make O Bar the amazing place that it is.
This is partly why I record my videos in landscape. Sure, it's the YouTube format because I think in terms of desktop and smart TV viewing. But I also try to capture as much of the stage as possible - including all of the O Boys and not just the queens.
So this is me putting into words a very small part of the love we feel for the O Boys (past and present!) This is me reminding all of you that O Bar is not just about the O Divas, who are truly fabulous, of course. O Bar puts on a complete show with a full production in mind including complex choreography and even things like lighting and sets. And in order to celebrate that properly, you need to celebrate everyone who contributes to that effort. Thus we continue to cheer on the O Boys just as much as we cheer on the queens because they're a crazy fun bunch who are more than worth the love and admiration.
And once again, Happy Birthday, Jonbel! I know we're not alone in appreciating all that he does for the bar and how much time and effort he invests in the O Boys as a group. He deserves all the best things in life because he's such an amazing and talented individual.
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