After the success of the University of the Philippines (UP) Komedya Fiesta 2008, Virgilio Almario, National Artist for Literature and then College of Arts & Letters (CAL) Dean proclaimed that after komedya, the sarsuwela is the second national theatre form in the Philippines truly deserving to be examined. In his opening remarks in the Sarsuwela…
Category: Cultural Performance
Seduced by Cosmopolitanism
Some social scientists look at cosmopolitanism as a political concept. Others look at it as a world-view or a disposition. Some believe that cosmopolitanism is an actual and existing reality. Others view it as the other side or a critique of globalization. My fascination with cosmopolitanism is, of course, from the various academic conceptions –…
Throwback: Komedya Fiesta 2008 at the University of the Philippines Diliman
To celebrate the centenary of the University of the Philippines (UP), the College of Arts and Letters at the Diliman Campus held the Komedya Fiesta 2008. For the whole month of February, the campus was dressed with traditional fiestas culminating with performances of komedya, a traditional Hispanic theatre form that has been Filipinized. Conceived in…
The Month of May and the Season of the Queen in the Philippines
The excerpt below is from my essay “Panata, Pagtitipon, Pagdiriwang: A Preliminary Contexualization of Cultural Performances in the Philippines” published in Humanities Diliman: A Journal of Philippine Humanities, a Scopus-listed journal published by the University of the Philippines Diliman. The journal is open-access, please click here for the current issue. To access the full essay,…
Performing Catholicism, Performing Ambivalence
In 2003, I was admitted to the master’s program (theatre arts) of the UP Diliman Department of Speech Communication and Theatre Arts of the College of Arts and Letters. My thesis was on the nailing ritual in Cutud in the province of Pampanga. The nailing ritual was not my original research plan. I initially wanted to…
Mythology, Cosmology and Tourism in Play: The Barong and Kris Dance in Bali
Bali, an island in the Indonesian Archipelago, is a tourist haven among adventure seekers, cultural enthusiasts, and nature-lovers. As a traveler, Bali is one of the many places in the world listed in my bucket list. My obsession and fascination with UNESCO World Heritage Sites made me want to visit Bali since the inclusion of…
Traditional Fiesta in The Archipelagic Province of Batanes: Pistang Chavayan (Part 2 of 2)
In the morning, everyone is awakened by loud music of drums and violins. Musicians locally known as musikos roam around the street to signal the start of the festivity. The loud music also signals the arrival of the parish priest whose kumbento (residential parish) is 45-minute ride away from the Chavayan. By 7:30 am, the…
Kasipa in Marawi City
Since the second quarter of 2017, Marawi City in Mindanao has become one of the most popular cities in the Philippine archipelago. Sadly, its popularity is due to the attack of a fundamentalist group called the Maute on 23 May 2017. Since then, the beautiful city was devastated. Many families had to relocate themselves. Today,…
Performing the “Masculine” in the Peñafrancia
The feast of Our Lady of Peñafrancia (locally called Ina or mother by devotees) is celebrated on the Sunday after the Octave (8 Days) of September 8 (the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Catholic calendar) that usually falls on the second or third Sunday of September in Naga City in the province…
Cultural Performances
My first encounter with the term cultural performance was about 20 years ago. I was still a student at the Mother of Good Counsel Seminary – its minor seminary. Minor seminaries (High School seminaries) in Luzon back then annually meet for a sports festival called Sangkan (short for “Isang Angkan kay Kristo,” One Family in Christ)….
Tanghal Kultura 