Meet Filipino American lighting designer who puts a shine on dark comedy in Boston

By WALTER ANG
March 30, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net

BOSTON — A Filipino American family is front and center in the Boston world premiere of Fil-Am playwright Hortense Gerardo's dark comedy "Middleton Heights." Fil-Am lighting designer SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal provides the enhancing hues. 

Lighting designer SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal

Salotto-Cristobal's recent credits include "Into the Woods," "Dracula," James and the Giant Peach," "Eurydice," "The Comedy of Errors," "The Addams Family" among others.

He designs for theater, opera, dance, musical concerts and events. In addition, he is an Assistant Professor of Lighting Design at the University of Southern Maine.

Commissioned by the Umbrella Stage Company, "Middleton Heights" follows Meena and her family, new immigrants in Cleveland, Ohio. They pursue the American Dream amidst transformative social moments, from the tumultuous 1960s to the new millennium, such as the Hough riots, the Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King assassinations and the protests against the killing of Tamir Rice.

Fil-Ams are deeply involved in the production. Michelle Aguillon is directing Steve Bermudo, Justin Budinoff, Cheryl Daro, Lisa Fermin-Granada, Jenine Florence Jacinto and Jude Torres.

Umbrella Stage Company has stated that it is "immensely proud to make this all-Asian American and Pacific Islander production our first-ever full-length play commission."

Lighting

Salotto-Cristobal had initially planned to take up underwater archaeology in college. "I was required an elective to fill out my semester. Not knowing what to take, I closed my eyes, flipped through the college catalog and pointed."

He ended up taking stagecraft. "I enjoyed the class so much that I stopped attending my other classes because I only wanted to be in the theater. I failed three courses that semester. I knew at that moment that I wanted to continue down this path.

"Bob Whittaker, the program's former Technical Director, took me under his wing and introduced me to lighting design. His mentorship and encouragement led me to graduate school to continue to study lighting."

Incredible

Salotto-Cristobal says he is "honored and excited" to be working with "incredible storytellers" on this project.

"Middleton Heights"'Filipino American actors (From left) Jude Torres,
Cheryl Daro, Lisa Fermin-Granada and Justin Budinoff in rehearsals. 

Just as the play offers audiences a look into one Filipino American family, Salotto-Cristobal also has his own story to tell. He says, "This opportunity also serves as an education about Filipino culture and experience."

Salotto-Cristobal was born in Cairo, Egypt to an Egyptian mother and a Puerto Rican-Filipino American father. "However, my father identified as white and my mother raised me as a Muslim."

"There was little talk of my Filipino family," he says. "[When] I was in high school and saw the hate targeting those who were different, I adopted my father's `whiteness' and spent much of my life hiding behind that camouflage.

"It has only been within the last five to seven years that I have embraced and tried to reconnect with my background. That has required education about Filipino culture and trying to connect with the Filipino side of my family, who primarily lives in California."

"I am excited to have this opportunity to get to know and connect with the Filipino community here in Greater Boston, and I hope it will help me deepen my understanding of who I am and where I come from."

Relatable

Salotto-Cristobal says that the more he has been reading the play, "the more relatable the story becomes. While there are customs, food, and language that I do not yet know about Filipino culture, I feel closer to my Filipino heritage than I thought."

"While I did not grow up in the Filipino culture, I recognize many of the familial relationships and conversations in the story as similar to ones I had with my own family."

"I like this story and feel that even non-Filipino audience members will be able to attach themselves in some way to the characters. More importantly, every night the audience will get a glimpse into Filipino life and immigrant life."

"Middleton Heights" runs March 31-April 23. Pre-show rondalla or tinikiling performances and post-show talkbacks are scheduled for selected dates. Visit theumbrellaarts.org.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/125877/meet-fil-am-lighting-designer-who-puts-a-shine-on-dark-comedy-in-boston

Paolo Montalban is on a roll: ‘Cinderella’ on Disney+ and Broadway’s ‘Funny Girl’

By WALTER ANG
March 28, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net 

NEW YORK — Filipino American actor Paolo Montalban is on a roll.

He has been cast as King Charming opposite Brandy Norwood as Cinderella in the Disney+ original movie "Descendants: The Rise of Red."

Paolo Montalban, seen here with Brandy Norwood,
is King Charming in "Descendants: Rise of Red." ABC/DISNEY+

He will also  be joining the cast of the Broadway revival of "Funny Girl" featuring Glee star Lea Michele in the title role. He will play Florenz Ziegfeld beginning March 28.

Montalban and Norwood are reuniting to reprise their groundbreaking roles from the iconic 1997 television movie of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella." They starred alongside Whitney Houston, who played the fairy godmother and was a co-producer of the film. It was the first time these characters had been portrayed by actors of color on national television.

Disney's music-driven Descendants cinematic universe follows the teenage children of classic Disney villains.

In "Descendants: The Rise of Red," Cinderella and Charming's perfectionist daughter Chloe must join forces with her polar opposite Red, the rebellious daughter of the tyrannical Queen of Hearts. The pair has to work together to stop a coup started by the Queen, played by British singer Rita Ora

Four Isle of the Lost tie-in novels have been written by Fil-Am author Melissa de la Cruz.

Responses

Disney+ announced the casting on its Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, including a behind-the-scenes video clip of the couple.

In Montalban's Instagram account (@itspaolomontalban), he shared the clip and wrote, "Brandy! My QUEEN!!"

An appreciative user left a comment, "As an Asian American musical theater fan, thank you for all the work you're doing to break barriers in the entertainment industry!"

Responses to the tweet include "Wow wow wow," "Ahhhh they're back!!!! They look good," and "Yes, im over here sobbing!!!! They look amazing. I can't wait to watch this."

Montalban's other television credits include Kung Lao in "Mortal Kombat: Conquest," "Madam Secretary," "The Blacklist," "Law & Order: SVU."

Funny Girl

The original 1964 production of "Funny Girl" launched Barbra Streisand to international fame. She then won an Oscar for reprising the role in the 1968 film adaptation.

Paolo Montalban will also join the cast of "Funny Girl" on Broadway. INSTAGRAM

The musical follows the life of singer and comic Fanny Brice from her humble beginnings in Brooklyn, New York to her rise to fame and fortune onstage in the Ziegfeld Follies and as a radio and screen performer.

The musical popularized songs such as "Don't Rain On My Parade" and "People."

In Montalban's Instagram account, he writes, "Hey Mr. Ziegfeld, here I am! I look forward to saying 'Hello gorgeous' to all of you at the stage door!"

He also thanked "the Funny Girl estate for the opportunity to represent our diverse theater community by playing this legendary theater impresario."

Montalban's other Broadway credits include "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "Pacific Overtures" and "The King and I."

He played Prince Charming in a national tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" in 2000 with Deborah Gibson as Cinderella and Eartha Kitt as the Fairy Godmother.

"Funny Girl" has score by Jule Styne and lyrics by Bob Merrill with a revised book by Tony winner Harvey Fierstein from Isobel Lennart's original.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/125712/paolo-montalban-is-on-a-roll-cinderella-on-disney-and-broadways-funny-girl

SF Yerba Buena Center for the Arts honors Filipino American artists and leaders

By WALTER ANG
March 21, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net 

SAN FRANCISCO — Filipino Americans are among this year's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts 100, the institution's plaudit to artists, activists and leaders who are "committed to building regenerative and equitable communities."

This year's YBCA 100 honorees include Filipino Americans theater director Ely Orquiza,
writer and musician Rocky Rivera, and DJ Guerrilla Pump. 

This year's YBCA 100 honorees include poet and publisher Aileen Cassinetto, community organizer Lolita Kintanar, theater director Ely Orquiza, choreographer Alleluia Panis, DJ Guerrilla Pump, journalist and musician Rocky Rivera, visual artist O.M. France Viana and visual artist Jenifer K. Wofford. The list also includes the South of Market Community Action Network and SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Heritage District's Kapwa Gardens.

Opened to the public in 1993, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts was founded as the cultural anchor of the Yerba Buena Gardens neighborhood, spanning contemporary art, performance, film, civic engagement, and public life.

At the program recognizing this year's honorees, Rivera headlined performances with her singing. The event also featured poetry, drag and other music performances. SOMA Pilipinas held a graffiti installation by the TDK Collective, which was founded by the late graffiti artist Mike "Dream" Francisco.

Cassinetto is a poet and cultural organizer. An Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow, she served as poet laureate of San Mateo County from 2019-2022. She is also the author of two poetry collections, and the founder of the independent literary press Paloma Press. She is currently a Commissioner on the Status of Women for San Mateo County.

Kintanar is known for her work as a former Director of Canon Kip Senior Center, providing food, jobs, and other services for seniors, people with disabilities and unhoused people. She is active with the Felton Institute and serves on the boards of the Pilipino Senior Resource Center and API Legal Outreach.

Orquiza is co-founder and co-artistic director of The Chikahan Company, a Fil-Am theater company focused on Filipinx history, politics and psychology. As the director of education and community at Magic Theatre, he works in arts programming for marginalized groups such as previously incarcerated individuals, immigrant and refugee families, Black and brown artists, and LGBTQIA+ elders living with HIV/AIDS.

Panis is the Artistic and Executive Director of Kularts, a performing arts group focused on contemporary and tribal Pilipino arts. She has choreographed over 20 full-length dances staged in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Panis has served as a member of National Performance Network's Artists Committee and as a board member of Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, Brava! for Women in the Arts, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, and Dance Bay Area.

Afro Filipino American Guerrilla Pump is the Bay Area father of the all-trans DJ collective New World Dysorder. He is a founding member of the DJ crew We Are The Ones We've Been Waiting For, known for its initiatives with communities targeted by state-sanctioned violence and socio-cultural marginalization.

Rivera has released albums with Beatrock Music and a mixtape series with DJ Roza. Her latest album, Rocky's Revenge, was created in collaboration with Women's Audio Mission. Rivera's book Snakeskincollects autobiographical essays chronicling her artist journey and includes complete lyrics to all of her albums.

Viana is a visual artist, art historian, curator, writer and mythologist who chronicles how Filipino immigration is redefining what it means to be American. She founded and runs ARROZidency, an artist residency program nurturing Fil-Am artists.

Wofford is one third of the Fil-Am artist trio M.O.B. She has been exhibited in museums in San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, Philippines and Hong Kong. She serves on the Board of Directors of Southern Exposure and teaches art courses at the University of San Francisco.

The South of Market Community Action Network is a community-based organization serving low-income immigrant youth and families in the South of Market (SoMa) area since 2000. It is composed of community leaders from youth, senior, veteran, Filipino and housing organizations. It offers education, direct services, and referrals.

Kapwa Gardens is a community health and wellness space that showcases activities that heal the mind and body such as vendor pop-ups, live music, public screenings, cultural activities, and more.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/125480/sf-yerba-buena-center-for-the-arts-honors-fil-am-artists-and-leaders 

Filipino American comedian and CEO opens new show

By WALTER ANG
March 21, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net

LOS ANGELES — Filipino American Ana Tuazon Parsons likes to tell people that she was smuggled from the Philippines as a victim of human trafficking. While this may not be exactly the way events unfolded, it does make more sense once you realize she is a comedian talking about how she ended up in the United States.

Filipino American comedian Ana Tuazon Parsons

Her latest endeavor is "Asian American Eyz'd: An Immigrant Comedy Special," of which she is executive producer, writer and creator.

The comedy special highlights her work along with two other Asian American comedians. "Two of whom are part of the LGBT community," Parsons says. "It tells of our stories of immigration, growing up, assimilation and finding ourselves."

Directed by Felipe Figueroa ("Medium"), the show brings all three comics together for a revealing one-night performance, each sharing their personal journey to America as an immigrant.

Comedy

Parsons has done work on stage and television. She has appeared in "The Affair" and "Dexter." She performed with Phillip Seymour Hoffman's Labyrinth Theatre Company at New York's Public Theatre and has appeared at numerous theaters around the country performing both contemporary and classical works.  She also performed in the international tour of "Sherlock Holmes" with David Arquette.

Comedy, however, was not always part of her career. Parsons had always been afraid of stand up comedy. She finally got into it when she got dumped. "I thought at the time I needed to put that depression somewhere and give it a shot. I found out I had a knack for it."

She called her first foray "The Break Up Set." "So, thank you, ex, for that," she says.

Joys

Parsons says the joy of having her work seen by audiences is the feedback she receives. "One of the resounding things that we keep hearing after people watch the special is how they feel seen. How they feel that others will feel seen."

"Hearing that, we've done our job at storytellers. I was so moved by a fellow Asian American saying this show has meant so much to them. How powerful it was seeing three people that looked like them onstage telling their stories. That having this visibility felt huge to them because representation does matter.

After Parsons once performed a staged reading for a TV project she was developing, she says "a fellow Pinoy came up to me. He was queer and grew up in a small town in Texas. He told me I was telling his story and that he felt seen in a way that he had never heard or seen on TV before. It's moments like that one that fuel me to keep me going."

Passion

In addition to performing, Parsons is also CEO of her own independent production company that makes "stories that I want to see.

"Often times as artists we are sitting and waiting for approval. We're waiting to book a job. We're waiting to get the greenlight and have a yes in front of us. I just decided rather than waiting for the yes, why don't I say yes to myself.

"I started from a place where I was 'I don't know what the hell I'm doing. I don't know how we're going to get this out there. Is this even possible?' But I'm blessed with a scrappy tenacity and that certainly paid off and got us to where we are.

"It [makes] everything all the more rewarding."

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https://usa.inquirer.net/125091/fil-am-comedian-and-ceo-opens-new-show

LA Book launch for ‘Growing Up Filipino 3′

By WALTER ANG
March 16, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net 

LOS ANGELES — Filipino American author and publisher Cecilia Manguerra Brainard will have a book launch for Growing Up Filipino 3: New Stories for Young Adults on March 18 hosted by the Carlos Bulosan Book Club.

Brainard is the book's editor, of which collects 25 short stories by Filipino authors in the U.S. and the Philippines on what it means to be young and Filipino.

Joining her is Filipino American Marilyn Alquizola, one of the book's contributors. Writer Ryo Alfar will represent his mother Nikki Alfar, a Filipino speculative fictionist who is also a contributor to the book.

Attendees will have the opportunity to share their own stories and memories of their youth at the gathering after the writers' presentations.

The Carlos Bulosan Book Club was established in 2017 by the Friends of Echo Park Branch Library. This branch of the Los Angeles Public Library is located in the heart of Historic Filipinotown and houses a dedicated Philippine Heritage Collection that consists of several hundred volumes on Filipino American life and culture.

The event will also have a Zoom component and will be livestreamed on the club's Facebook page. A book signing will follow after a Q&A.

Growing series

The book's stories explore the universal themes of coming-of-age, love, angst, family, relationships, and other young adult issues. The stories reveal Filipino and Filipino American culture, mores, history, society, politics, and other nuances. For instance, Filipino respect for their elders, extended families, religious practices, funeral rites, and love for folklore are apparent in the stories.

The first two titles in this series, Growing Up Filipino: Stories For Young Adults (2003) and Growing Up Filipino II: More Stories For Young Adults (2010), were included in National Geographic's Reading List in 2020. Used by educators in their classrooms, these books are enjoyed by adults and young adults alike.

Other contributors include Brainard herself, Gina Apostol, Patrick Joseph Caoile, Ian Casocot, Noelle de Jesus, George Deoso, Migs Bravo Dutt, James Fajarito, Yvette Fernandez, Patricia Go, Sarge Lacuesta, Zak Linmark, Veronica Montes, Kannika Pena, Oscar Peñaranda, Danton Remoto, Brian Ascalon Roley, Renee Macalino Rutledge, Dom Sy, Eileen Tabios, Linda Ty-Casper, Marianne Villanueva and Jack Wigley.

Other events

Alquizola was born in San Francisco and has taught Asian American Literature at several universities. Her parents, just like Brainard, are from Cebu province in the Philippines.

Brainard is the author of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, Magdalena, and The Newspaper Widow. She oversees publishing imprint Philippine American Literary House.

Later in the month, she will attend a talk and reading at the Los Angeles Central Library's Teen'scape young adult department. Slated to join her are Ryo Alfar, Alquizola and Fil-Am author Brian Ascalon Roley.

Roley is the author of the novel American Son, short fiction collection The Last Mistress of Jose Rizal: Stories, and short poetry collection Ambuscade.

In April, Brainard will be featured at the ParisLitUp Reading at the Culture Rapide in France.

Echo Park Library is at 1410 W. Temple St., Los Angeles. Email palhbooks@gmail.com.  

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https://usa.inquirer.net/124459/la-book-launch-for-growing-up-filipino-3 

One-woman show explores Filipino American identity crises

By WALTER ANG
March 15, 2023 | USA.inquirer.net

BALTIMORE, Maryland — Actress Cori Dioquino probes the complexities of living as a Filipino American in the United States in her one-person show "Crisis Mode."

Filipino American actor Cori Dioquino

Helmed by Filipino American director Tara Cariaso, the show "weaves Dioquino's personal history with that of her motherland, the Philippines, and its complicated relationship to the United States through dance, movement, music and art."

Based in New York City and Baltimore, Dioquino has worked on stage and in film and television, most notably appearing on screen as Nurse Eddie on NBC's "New Amsterdam" and in Marvel/Netflix's hit series "Daredevil" as Sophia Carter.

In 2018, she co-founded Asian Pasifika Arts Collective, an organization which aims to "use art to advocate representation of Asian Americans and Pacific Indigenous Americans in everyday life while building cross-community relationships."

The show tracks Dioquino's "three major identity crises" as she shares her experiences growing up as an immigrant in the "Land of the Free," coping with hidden mental health issues, and her gradual transition from "Proud Pinoy" to "Generic Asian."

Online to onstage

Two years ago, Dioquino was asked by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Social Concern to deliver a webinar that addressed the anti-Asian violence taking place all over the country.

"At the time, there weren't a lot of public discussions regarding the rise of violence towards Asians throughout the pandemic. After the shootings in Atlanta, that all changed," she said, referring to the mass shooting in 2021 where a man killed eight people, six of whom were Asian.

(In 2020, she helped launch the national campaign Unapologetically Asian to respond to discrimination towards Asians and Asian Americans during the pandemic.)

"Once everyone started hyper-focusing on the anti-Asian violence, it all of a sudden felt too heavy a topic for me to continue speaking on. So I pivoted and decided to use the opportunity to tell my story as a Filipino immigrant instead."

"The structure for this show, using my three identity crises to address history, comes directly from the webinar I gave. People who watched kept telling me afterward that the webinar felt more like a one-person show. And now here we are."

Not alone

Dioquino says, "I did not grow up in a huge Filipino community that had Filipino dance troupes or festivals. We had house parties with lots of Filipino food, but that's not the same. Filipinos were barely mentioned in American history books."

She provides this background to explain how, "I didn't have a huge connection to my heritage growing up Filipino in Maryland."

By sharing her own story, the goal is "to reach Filipinos who are like I was as a child or a teen. I just want them to feel seen and I want other immigrants to hear my story and know that they're not alone in their trauma."

"There's so much that we don't talk about, that we silence within ourselves. I hope this show empowers others to unsilence those parts of their lives."

She is quick to say that the show is not just for Filipino Americans. "It's very much for Filipinos, immigrants and Asian Americans. For anyone who doesn't identify as any one of those identities, I just want them to listen. You learn a lot more if you just listen.

"I hope this show challenges their perceptions and misconceptions of Asians, Filipinos, immigrants and even Asian and immigrant women.

"And I hope that everyone starts to consider the experiences of the 1.5 generation, the generation of children who immigrated at a young age, but grew up in the States or another country. We're often overlooked and forgotten about in the larger conversation regarding immigration. I want them to be seen and valued and considered."

"Crisis Mode: Living Pilipino in America" runs March 17-April 2 at Strand Theater Co., 5426 Harford Rd., Maryland. Visit strand-theater.org.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/124356/one-woman-show-explores-fil-am-identity-crises

Filipino American's play ‘Sticky Rice’ explores gay dating, attraction, self-worth

By WALTER ANG
March 13, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net

SAN FRANCISCO — Filipino American playwright Boni Alvarez has a new a comedy "with very dark tones" that explores the dynamics of dating, relationships and what is considered attractive among gay Asian men.

"Sticky Rice" cast (from left) Joseph Alvarado, Christopher Juan and Raphael Buenaventura. 

His play "Sticky Rice," wherein a group of gay, Asian friends living in San Francisco splinters apart when one of them brings his new boyfriend into the fold,  will have a one-night-only staged reading at Theatre Rhinoceros helmed by Fil-Am director Ely Orquiza.

Fil-Ams in the cast include Joseph Alvarado, Raphael Buenaventura and Christopher Juan. Fil-Am characters in the play include Sampson, a James Beard-nominated chef and Carlo, a professor of nursing.

Orquiza says that the Theatre Rhinoceros' monthly staged reading series is an opportunity for the company and the community to hear new plays that are being considered for season programming for the following year. "The directors either pitch a play to produce or the company scouts a director to pair with a play to direct a reading that have been previously read by the artistic team."

Alvarez's recent credits include "America Adjacent" for Skylight Theatre and "Apartment Living" also for Skylight Theatre co-produced by Playwrights' Arena.

Despise and desire  

Alvarez developed the themes for this play partly because of his observations of how people behave on dating apps. "I've always had such a visceral reaction to the phrase `no fats, no femmes, no Asians,'" referring to how some people list their aversions on their profiles.

"This very succinct phrase that expresses preference in such a hateful way, that popularly legitimized the further marginalization of the already marginalized."

"On the other end of the spectrum, when I would see men on dating apps seeking Asian men, I would be equally disturbed.  These men are typically white. The language of their posts would be so colonial, oozing with exoticism."

Alvarez says that he wanted to use his play to explore "the notion of `rice queens,'" referring to gay men who prefer Asian men, "and the gaysian body and sexuality in its own circle."

Media and masculinity

Another topic that Alvarez wants to tackle is "masculinity itself in relation to Asian gay men, men who are traditionally emasculated.  The play has quite a bit of behavior that I think a lot of people would consider toxic."

"In American media, Asian men have largely been depicted in an emasculated light, as the asexual nerd, the comedic foreign exchange student, the active yet sexless martial artist, the suffering gay butterfly."

He says that he tends to take in what he sees in his surroundings. "I've always taken note of gay Asian men when I see them out and about and have noted who they're with romantically, the types of men they're partnered with, their behavior in relation to their partners.

"Generally, their partners are white or of another race other than Asian; there's often a difference of size in stature; sometimes, you witness the old trope of the Asian butterfly in action.

"Besides my being from the Bay Area, I set the play in San Francisco because of its large Asian population. Beyond gay couplings, there are so many interracial couples in the Bay. Seeing an Asian woman with a white man is so common. It is not as common to see an Asian man with a white woman or a woman of another race.  People may say it's just preference, but media affects and shapes that preference whether we acknowledge it or not."

He goes on to explain that the characters in "Sticky Rice" have internalized such popular depictions. "The play explores what happens when they are forced to confront their own self-hatred."

"Can these men embrace their masculinity and learn to celebrate the bodies they live in?  Sticky Rice is about unwrapping sticky rice, about unearthing gay Asian beauty outside of the white gaze and beginning on the journey to self-love."

"Sticky Rice" staged reading is on March 14, 7 p.m. at Theatre Rhinoceros, 4229 18th St., San Francisco.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/124145/fil-ams-play-sticky-rice-explores-gay-dating-attraction-self-worth

Carlos Bulosan Theatre resumes programming for ‘23

By WALTER ANG
March 1, 2023 | USA.Inquirer.net 

TORONTO — Filipino Canadian performing organization Carlos Bulosan Theatre kicked off the year with a social mixer for the creative community titled "In the Mood for Kilig."

Carlos Bulosan Theatre artistic director Leon Aureus
and associate producers Rielle Ramos and Hanna Donato.
Photos by Enrique Baniqued

After a pause of several years for the Filipino Canadian artistic community due to the pandemic, artistic director Leon Aureus said that "in its continuing efforts, 40 plus years and counting, to foster and build community, Carlos Bulosan Theatre hopes to rekindle the love for creation and the arts."

"We also wanted to make ourselves known as an organization that can provide a space to grow and find support, as we continue to make meaningful work," Aureus added, as he announced the group's programming for the year and to introduce the group's new associate producers Rielle Ramos and Hanna Donato.

Performed and hosted by Joy Castro and Dom Brillantes, the improvised and interactive play began with a mixer and then turned into an open mic to allow the attendees to get to know each other and share their current works.

Future projects

The company aims to "activate and re-engage the Filipino Canadian community and our allies back to the theater arts, and more specifically, activist theater."

"One of our core values in creating activist-centered theater is to educate the masses on factual events and relevant topics that are important to the greater Filipino narrative. We feel a deep connection to serve our diasporic community and help retain our community's connection to the Philippines." 

"In recent years, especially during the Philippine elections, the proliferation of revisionist history and fake news in the Philippines has become very concerning. It's important to curb the rise of revisionism, misdirection and the bending of truth through our work in theater and community building.

"By supporting emerging Filipino Canadian artists to develop their own theatrical works that represent the diverse realities of Filipino Canadians, we hope to build connections via arts, community and cultural exchange."

Activities

To achieve these goals, this year, the company will be holding a "Drrrty Kitchen" playwriting workshop to be followed by a recital of the developed works in its "Tales of the Flipside" showcase.

The event was hosted by Domniqiue Brillantes (standing, left)
and Joy Castro (standing, far right). 

It will have a series of play readings called "Recollections," focusing on the company's past works. It will feature artists who were involved in those productions. Discussions will conclude each reading.

A podcast is intended to have "conversations and reflections on where we've been, where we stand, and where we're going as a theater company, as artists, `artivists' and as a community."

There are also plans to release an anthology of plays and historical highlights from the company's run as the nation's longest standing Filipino-Canadian theater company.

Great

"Overall, the event was a great kick-off to the year. The attendees filled the space with much warmth and laughter led by our amazing hosts. I'm excited to have Rielle and Hanna onboard as new associate producers. This company has a history of strong and brilliant women leaders," said Aureus.

"There was a great buzz, an amazing energy afterwards as people stayed long after the performances were over. We also had a fantastic open mic proving, no doubt, that Filipinos really love to perform!"

For details, email carlosbulosantheatre@gmail.com.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/123255/carlos-bulosan-theatre-resumes-programming-for-23