When my friends learned about my trip to Brazil in 2017, they immediately reminded me about their pasalubong (mementos) from Rio de Janeiro – a ref magnet would do as long as it had the photo of “Christ, the Redeemer” or the Sugarloaf Mountain in it. But my actual destination was Brasília. My friends confused Brazil’s federal capital…
Galerius’ Resting Place in Gamzigrad
During the closing ceremony of the 2017 International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR) Annual Conference in São Paulo, Brazil, it was announced that the 2018 conference and world congress would happen in Belgrade, Serbia through the Faculty of Dramatic Arts, University of Arts Belgrade. I remember the awkwardness I felt about the announcement because the…
University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) as a UNESCO World Heritage Site? Why not!
The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) is a public research university in Central America. Founded in 1910, its main campus was the birthplace of the student movement of 1968, which turned into a nationwide rebellion against autocratic rule and began Mexico’s three-decade journey toward democracy. The main campus is also made vibrant by several…
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,…
Perks of Travelling?!
Part of my academic vocation (yeah, I consider my job a “calling”) is traveling: conferences, academic meetings, symposiums, and fellowships. Many times, I want to think of these travels as “perks.” However, they are not really perks. Honestly, if not with my active networking (no – not that kind of networking which starts in a coffee…
Looking for Heritage
As an academic, I find the concept of heritage problematic. Those who are conceived as the authority of heritage (normally, the educated, the State) constantly use history of the glorious past as the primary defining framework for etching something as heritage. This identification equates heritage as something significantly valuable similar to how precious stones such as…
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 