The Ika-34 GAWAD CCP Para sa Alternatibong Pelikula at Video, or Gawad Alternatibo continues to showcase this year’s finalists of various films at the newly launched CCP Arthouse Cinema or Tanghalang Manuel Conde (TMC) this August 6-14, 2022.
This year’s theme, ‘GIYA – Tahakin at panoorin ang mga pelikulang giya ng ating panahon.’, showcases the ability of films to act as a guide for people as they navigate through life changes. The theme emphasizes that “Memory and history have blind spots. The ineffable escapes and defies language. But film, where shadows lurk and tease darkness and light, will provide us the lens to sift through contradictions, will mark the limits of chaos, and serve as a beacon of a nation’s becoming.”
The 34th Gawad Alternatibo is held in four (4) main categories – Animation, Documentary, Experimental, and Short Feature.
There will be ten (10) entries for Animation, ten (10) for Documentary, eleven (11) for Experimental, and fifteen (15) for Short Feature.
The winners will be chosen by respective Jury Members per category: Animation – Deborah Tudtud (Chairperson), Danilo Montano, and Wayie Canoy; Documentary – Lester Valle (Chairperson), Alyx Arumpac, and Joanna Arong; Experimental – King Catoy (Chairperson), Rhine Bernardino, and Tad Ermitaño; and Short Feature – Jason Tan Liwag (Chairperson), Jun Sabayton, and Tara Illenberger.
Talkbacks will be held on August 6 for Documentary, August 7 for Experimental and Animation, and August 8 for Short Feature. Exhibition sections such as the Curated List and Retrospective films feature the GAWAD Alternatibo Winners from 2020 to 2021.
The Gawad Alternatibo, established in 1987, is recognized as the longest-running independent film and video competition of its kind in Asia. It is one of the main highlights of the 18th Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, which also runs from August 5-14, 2022. The Gawad Awards Night will be held on August 13 (Saturday), 2022 at 6:15 p.m. at the CCP Arthouse Cinema or TMC.
Visit www.gawadalternatibo.org and www.facebook.com/gawadalt to learn more about Gawad Alternatibo. For information on the 18th Cinemalaya Film Festival screening schedules and other offerings, follow the official CCP and Cinemalaya social media sites on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For additional information, go to the CCP website at www.culturalcenter.gov.ph.
After two and a half years of not being able to physically sing together, the Sing Philippines Youth Choir (SPYC) Tour Group was finally reunited and organized by the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) Cultural Exchange Department (CED) in partnership with the Andrea O. Veneracion (AOV) Sing Philippines Foundation and the Philippine Madrigal Singers for an outreach music camp and performance ongoing held last July 18-24, 2022 in San Jose Del Monte City, Bulacan and the CCP. The project was a continuation of the group’s choral training that began in 2019 in Batangas and Bohol, but was forced to shift to virtual in 2020 due to the pandemic.
First organized and launched in 2014, the first batch of SPYC was participated by fifty (50) choristers from 19 provinces across the country who underwent a professional week-long music camp under MADZ choirmaster Mark Anthony Carpio. The Sing Philippines movement brings to life National Artist Andrea O. Veneracion’s vision of a nation singing in harmony and united in songs. The second batch was organized in 2016 which added a new set of 50 singers from 26 provinces, the third batch in 2018 had 51 singers from 37 provinces/cities and the 4th batch last year composed of 59 singers from 25 provinces had a virtual training and performance. To date, the SPYC totals to 213 singers from 56 local communities all over the country.
Carpio underscores the importance of continuous training and performing together for chorale singers. “In the arts, such as in singing, the moment we claim to know everything is the moment we begin to deteriorate. Singing, in whatever form, may be compared to swimming: the only way to be better and move forward is to keep on swimming.”
Carmencita “Chinggay” Jasareno-Bernardo, CCP Cultural Exchange Department Manager expressed “We are grateful to be able to go back (physically) to the local communities to implement our outreach programs. Although there are added measures that we need to strictly observe due to the ongoing pandemic, the artists and cultural workers are really happy and thankful to be able to engage once again in creative and cultural work. It means a lot to them and to us because in the past two and a half years of the pandemic, we have seen how the arts have helped many people and communities cope with various struggles in life. And this is the reason why we pursue our mission to contribute to the healing process by way of our outreach programs in music, dance, theater and other art forms”.
This year’s music camp is hosted by the City of San Jose Del Monte in Bulacan through its Tourism Operations Office. The SPYC Tour Group had its outreach performance at the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto Shrine in San Jose Del Monte City Bulacan on July 22 at 3:00pm which was streamed live via the CCP CED Facebook (FB) page.
For more information, contact the CCP CED FB page or thru email at ccp.ced2014@gmail.com, and the FB pages of the AOV Sing Philippines and City of San Jose Del Monte Tourism.
The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) has announced the winners of its inaugural CCP Animation, Comics, and Computer Games Grants Program. Seventeen individuals from all over the country won grants amounting to over 16 million pesos to develop computer games, animation and comics.
The winners are:
COMPUTER GAMES PROFESSIONAL CATEGORY
1. Ranida Games’ Sinag – San Pedro, Laguna
2. Metamedia Information Systems Corp.’s Treasure Seekers – Mandaluyong
3. Synthillate’s Pearls of Asia – Ortigas, Pasig
COMPUTER GAMES INDEPENDENT CATEGORY
1. kendikorp’s Galá – Las Piñas City
2. Katakata Creative’s Kata – Parañaque City
3. Makiling Interactive Arts’ San Fernando – Los Baños, Laguna
ANIMATION CATEGORY
1. Friendly Foes’ Makopa – San Juan, Metro Manila
2. KOMIKET INC.’s Tungkung Langit at Laon Sina – Makati City
3. Fizzbuzz, Inc.’s Tiki – Cebu City
4. Lea Zoraina Sindao Lim’s Datu Pat i Mata – Cotabato City, Maguindanao
COMICS CATEGORY
1. Randy P. Valiente’s Lalang Kalibutan – Antipolo City
2. Ethel Mae Reyes’ Tulogmatian – Iloilo City
3. Julius Sempio’s Teduray – Bulacan City
4. Alfred Ismael Galaroza’s Sinogo – Cebu City
5. Marco Sumayao’s Legend of Sleeping Beauty Mountain – Quezon City
6. Ruel Garcia Enoya’s Bantugen – Manila City
7. Anabelle Marie D. Laureola’s Sun says Moon says – Manila City
The winners were chosen from 39 submissions from Game Developers (29 Independent Game Developers and 10 professional Game Developers); 65 submissions for Animation and Comics (36 Applicants for Comics and 29 Applicants for Animation).
Three Professional Games grantees were awarded Php1.5 million each and three Independent Games grantees were awarded Php300,000 each.
Four Animation Grantees were awarded Php2 million each and 7 Comics grantees were awarded Php330,000 each.
“The CCP grants programs for game developers, animators and comic artists are pioneer projects initiated by the CCP Board of Trustees in support of its mandate in preserving, promoting and making known of timeless stories, myths, legends and other forms of communication through digital art forms in support of our country’s creative economy,” CCP Trustee Nikki Junia says.
Furthermore, CCP Trustee Benedict Carandang hopes that the seed investment of the CCP will help encourage future government legislators to support and fund programs like this that can help stimulate the local Creative Economy and emulate the success stories of South Korea and Malaysia in Digital Content Development.
Aside from awarding funding to grantees, the CCP also has partnered with the Creative Content Creators Association of the Philippines, Inc. (SIKAP) to train the grantees through a learning series program.
SIKAP is a non-profit association that has a simple vision in mind: locally created content, consumed globally. It aims to mentor and nurture a community of creators who are able to prepare, develop, sell and license their intellectual properties competitively.
Through the partnership, CCP and SIKAP work towards identifying and tapping industry leaders and practitioners to provide a more holistic understanding of the comics and animation industries. The learning series was developed to educate and inspire ways for our creators to move towards a more sustainable creative future. Some of the topics for the learning series include story and visual development but it also covers learning opportunities on production costs, financing, copyright, distribution strategies, and more.
“We have a long history of producing comics and animation. But we’ve always been viewed as hired talent. It simply isn’t sustainable and it doesn’t help us in the long run. What we really need are real investments that provide opportunities for Filipino creators to develop our storytelling and producing skills to make this sustainable,” Ayeen Pineda, SIKAP Board Director. “This is why SIKAP supports CCP in providing creators an opportunity to tell Filipino stories. Although the current Grants Program focuses on Filipino folktales, myths and legends, we also hope it expands to include original Filipino stories of any genre in the future.”
For more information about the CCP, please follow the official CCP social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The first lock-in workshop-mentoring of Ternocon 3 held last week at the Teachers’ Conference Center in Batangas City culminated last July 10, 2022.
For the last day of the workshop, the finalists completed their toiles (an initial version of a garment) for the competition and presented them to mentors Joey Samson, Dennis Lustico and Chito Vijandre with Ricky Toledo. In the evening, a closing program was hosted by the City Government of Batangas at the Sampaguita Farm where CCP President and officer-in-charge of the Artistic Director’s Office Margarita Moran-Floirendo was present along with Atty. Reginald Dimacuha, Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Mayor of Batangas City. The 1930s balintawak ternos made by the finalists were worn by the dancers of Likhang Sining Dance Company in a special Subli dance performance.
Ternocon Artistic Director Gino Gonzales acknowledged the continuing support of the CCP and Bench thru the generosity of Ben Chan, Chairman. He addressed the finalists and emphasized “Ternocon allows its participants to undergo a process that involves attitude change, as we are not merely addressing fashion or dress issues. Our country has so many problems, and we simply cannot solve everything. As designers, you can be part of the solution by dealing with issues within your backyard. When you grapple with the national dress and make it for your countrymen, you make a significant contribution to the nation. At TERNOCON, we all come from different backgrounds and perspectives, different religions, different regions, different political inclinations… but what unites all of us together is our love for country, and I think this should be your primary motivation for creating ternos that will be showcased at the CCP stage in the final phase of this competition. Love for country.”
In her closing message, Ms. Floirendo stressed that “Ternocon has somehow made a good impact on how Filipinos of today think of the terno. We have seen a remarkable increase in the number of Filipinas wearing the terno for many different occasions. Despite this, we all know that we still have a long way to go in fulfilling our mission. But with everyone’s support and cooperation, we can succeed.”
The 12 finalists are: Amor Albano (Ilocos Norte), Glyn Alley Magtibay (Oriental Mindoro), Bon Hansen Reyes (Rizal) and Gabbie Sarenas (Rizal) from Luzon. Bree Esplanada (Cebu), Karl Nadales (Iloilo), Al Rey Rosano (Negros Oriental) and Marc Carcillar (Iloilo) from Visayas. Glady Rose Pantua (Zamboanga) and Ron Santos (Davao) from Mindanao. From the National Capital Region (NCR), Yssa Inumerable (Parañaque) and Cheetah Rivera (Quezon City). The three semi-finalists who are from Batangas and NCR are Geom Hernandez, Dee Javier (Manila) and Daryl Maat (Caloocan).
Ternocon 3 is a joint undertaking of CCP thru its Cultural Exchange Department and Bench/Suyen Corporation in cooperation with local partners, Batangas City Government and the Barasoain Kalinangan Foundation Inc.
The next round of consultations (face-to-face and online) will be in August-September, while the 2nd part of the workshop-mentoring will be in October 2022. The final competition with cultural show is slated for January 28, 2023 at the new CCP Black Box Theater or Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez.
In celebration of the National Children’s Book Day (NCBD), the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), in partnership with the Philippine Board on Books for Young People (PBBY) is holding a series of book activities for children this month.
Themed “Tahanan ng Katotohanan: Aklatan!” the celebration aims to promote the significance of truth/truth-telling.
The CCP, together with The Independent Publishers Collab Philippines, a community of small press, launched the ‘Tahanan ng Katotohanan: Aklatan Online Children’s Book Fair’ featuring children’s books and other literary works from independent publishers. It will run until the end of July 2022 and can be accessed through the official Facebook pages of the CCP, CCP Intertextual Division, and TIPCPH.
On July 19, at 10 a.m., the PBBY will recognize this year’s Alcala and Salanga Prize winners through a virtual ceremony that will be streamed on the official Facebook pages of CCP and PBBY.
NCBD is celebrated every third Tuesday of July, not only to commemorate the date of the publication of Jose Rizal’s “The Monkey and the Turtle” in Trubner’s Oriental Record in London, but also to highlight the importance of nurturing young readers’ curiosity and imagination.
For details, visit the following Facebook pages: Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Philippine Board on Books for Young People. For inquiries, contact the CCP Intertextual Division at 8551-5959, 0919-3175708 or send an email to ccpintertextualdivision@gmail.com.
The Cultural Center of the Philippines announces that the musical Bayan Bayanan: Letters from Home, originally scheduled on July 15, 16, 2022 (7pm) and July 17, 2022 (3pm) has been postponed to better ensure health and safety of the performers and the audiences.
The new dates are July 29-30 (7pm) and July 31, 2022 (3pm). Ticket holders are advised to keep their tickets as the same tickets will be honored.
Bayan Bayanan: Letters from Home is a new musical based on the classic play of Bienvenido M. Noriega, Jr. presented by the CCP in partnership with Erehwon Center for the Arts.
The Cultural Center of the Philippines and Erehwon Center for the Arts present “BAYAN BAYANAN: Letters from Home,” a new musical based on the classic play of Bienvenido M. Noriega, Jr. This will be staged at the CCP Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo on July 15, 16, 2022 (7pm shows) and July 17, 2022 (matinee).
This production enjoys the special support of the Embassy of France in the Philippines, which has designated the play as part of their series of celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the Philippines – France diplomatic relations. The Embassy has sponsored the participation of French actress, Ms. Uno Zigelbaum, for a special role in this musical.
In 1947, the Philippines and France signed a Treaty of Amity which established diplomatic relations with the two countries.
The French government had also conferred honors on Bayan Bayanan director, Anton Juan. To honor his contributions to the arts, the French Republique knighted Juan Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres and Chevalier de l’Ordre National de Merit.
Internationally recognized theater and film director Anton Juan has transformed the classic play of celebrated playwright Bienvenido Noriega, Jr. into a refreshing new musical billed as Bayan Bayanan. This will be staged at the CCP Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo on July 15, 16, 2022 (7pm shows) and July 17, 2022 (matinee).
The play portrays the heart-warming and, sometimes, heartbreaking stories of Filipinos trying to carve a better life for themselves abroad.
Making up the cast are well-known theater actors as well as first-time stage performers. Professional theater actress and singer Banaue Miclat-Janssen portrays the central character, “Manang.” Banaue has performed in various spaces and films in the Philippines and abroad. She is an Aliw Awards Foundation Hall of Fame for Best Performer awardee.
Ava Olivia Santos, a singer, recording artist, and an actor in theater, film and television, portrays a Filipino nurse, struggling to carve a better life for herself abroad, seeking a fairy tale love.
Noriega wrote himself into the story as Dino, a scholar sent to study abroad on an international scholarship, much as Boy Noriega was, when he was inspired to write the play. Dino is portrayed by theater actor and classically trained singer Carlo Mañalac, who is remembered for having played several roles in different presentations of “Kanser,” a theatrical adaptation of Rizal’s “Noli Me Tangere.”
Roxy Aldiosa, a soprano who is both a theater actress and musical director, teams up with tenor Carlo Angelo Falcis, who is a singer, actor, and voice coach, to portray a comically annoying couple, status seekers who believe that any life abroad, even hardship posts, are better than life in the Philippines. Jacinta Remulla, who is known for her acting in “Suntok sa Buwan,” has been cast as the couple’s sultry and flirtatious niece, “Connie.”
Richard Macaroyo is Pol, the TNT, the illegal migrant, luckless in so many ways. Greg de Leon, who portrayed “Elias” in Noli Me Tangere: The Opera, is the perennially homesick Ginoong Luz, whose loneliness can only be lifted by the melodious singing of his wife. Opera singer Jane Wee is Ginang Luz.
Completing the Bayan Bayanan cast are Christine Angelica Evangelista, Carlo Mañalac, Timothy Carlo Racho, Kendrick Tamayo, Abigail Sulit, Jane Florence Wee, Matteo Teehankee, Karina Macaspac, and Adrian de Ubago. All with golden voices, and engaging acting talents. Watch the show and be moved by their refreshing performances.
“I have directed this play many times before in Europe, and each time there is always something new. It grows like a pearl, takes shape in the memory and hearts of those who perform it and those who watch it: why? Because it is real. It is grounded on real characters we can identify with, in all their beauty and vulnerability, in all their strengths and their weaknesses,” says Anton Juan.
“BUT ALWAYS we are grounded in that HOPING, in that FAITH — by which the Filipino nation is known for. There may be floods, martial laws, oppressions, interventions, and schisms in our history. But we always remember two things: 1. To laugh at ourselves and forgive – be it ourselves, others, or nature (sometimes to a fault, those who are greedy and malevolent to us and our people); and, 2. To pray, and to hope and have faith — without which there is no salvation.”
“I dedicate my direction of this play to all the migrant workers and migrant friends who “homed” me, “nationed” me in my times of study and work abroad, who “cradled” me as they cradled each other in times of crisis and personal rollercoaster times of highs and lows; to the entire cast and the production for taking special time to share their talent and their esteemed careers, countless dearest friends who helped, and our audiences — who are ALL part of the play because this play is about them, us, a nation outside their country.”
CCP Arthouse Cinema holds a special screening of National Artist Fernando Poe Jr.’s Alupihang Dagat (1976) to celebrate the 2022 National Heritage Celebration on July 8, 2022 (Friday), 2pm, at the Tanghalang Manuel Conde (CCP Audio-Visual Room).
In Alupihang Dagat, set in a humble fishing village where the men sail out to sea and the women stay behind to dive for sponges, Gomer learns of about the disappearances of seafaring youngsters upon returning from an extended voyage and soon sets out in his tiny skiff to get to the bottom of things.
Eventually, he stumbles upon the island hideout of a band of modern-day pirates who, under the leadership of a female captain named Odessa, are responsible for kidnapping and enslaving many of Gomer’s friends and neighbors.
There will also be a back-to-back screening of Nadjoua Bansil’s Bohe: Sons of the Waves (2012) and Emmanuel Dela Cruz’s Gabon (2007) at 4pm to commemorate the Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).
Gabon tells the story of how far a young Maranao girl takes to heart the promise to her parents that she will finish a school exam. The title comes from an old Maranao folk lullaby which means cloud. Shot in one day in Marawi, Lanao del Sur, just before Ramadan, Gabon features an ensemble cast of grades 2-4 students from the MSU Integrated Laboratory School and the alumni of Sining Kambayoka.
In Bohe: Sons of the Waves, five Badjao boys learn the value of mangroves in Malitam Island, where they escape from the conflicts and constant abuse by pirates and ordinary folks. Through this newfound knowledge, they plan to save their island from sinking due to harsh weather and other man-made causes.
Due to lack of money to buy the seedlings, they decide to steal them from the sanctuary. Little do they know what they are about to lose. Will these seedlings become their tree of hope or will this hope drown their dreams of a stable home? The hope of these young sea gypsies will be the frustration of their elders.
The film puts the spotlight on Sama Palau (commonly known as Badjaos), the second largest sea gypsy community in the world from the Southern parts of the Philippines.
The film screening aims to revisit our artists’ historical works to create consciousness, respect, and love for the legacies of the nation’s cultural history among the Filipino people and learn from these films. This is in collaboration with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, Philippine Film Archive, and the Society of Filipino Archivists for Film.
A Tribute will be given to eight exemplary personalities who were proclaimed National Artists, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Main Theater on Wednesday, June 29, 2022 at 5pm.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte conferred them the Order of National Artist in the field of dance, theatre, film and broadcast arts, literature, music, and fashion design, in a ceremony held last June 16 at the Rizal Hall of Malacanang. They were declared as the new National Artists by virtue of Presidential Proclamation no. 1390 signed on June 10.
The newly declared National Artists are Agnes Locsin (Dance), the late Salvacion Lim-Higgins (Fashion Design), the late Marilou Diaz-Abaya (Film and Broadcast Arts), Ricardo ‘Ricky’ Lee (Film and Broadcast Arts), Nora Cabaltera Villamayor aka Nora Aunor (Film), Gemino Abad (Literature), Fides Cuyugan-Asensio (Music), and Antonio Mabesa (Theater).
Agnes Locsin is a choreographer, director, and teacher. She is dubbed as one of the “most progressive contemporary choreographers in the Philippines,” for she distinctively utilizes Filipino beliefs, rituals, and ethnic traditions in her choreographies, concepts, and direction, which she was able to beautifully merge with her knowledge in Western dance techniques and called it “neo-ethnic.” Among her successful works are Babaylan, which won second place in the Tokyo International Choreography Competition in 1993; Taong Talangka (Man-Crab); Salome which won second place for dancer Camille Ordinario in the 1994 Concours International de la Danse in Paris, France; and narrative works like one on the life of the mythical hero Labaw Dungon in the epic Hinilawod from the island of Panay.
Salvacion Lim-Higgins, known to the fashion world as “Slim’s”, is credited for innovating and transforming the look of terno into a world-class silhouette by combining the elements of Philippine costume with European couture details and construction. She was known for her exquisite drapery, constant and evocative use of indigenous materials such as piña and jusi, referencing ethnic motifs in her modern dresses, and forward-looking and cutting-edge approach to fashion. Lim-Higgins introduced draping into traditional costumes and developed “convertible ternos.” Filipiniana took a more nuanced look through the eye-catching costumes she created for the Bayanihan Dance Company.
Marilou Diaz-Abaya was a film and television director and screenwriter. She began her career in the 1980s and was part of the generation that defined what is today remembered as the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.” Her notable works are Brutal (1980), which marked Diaz-Abaya’s clear directorial style and unique feminist voice, as she emerged as a bold experimenter of storytelling structure and a fierce creative protester of the harrowing plight of women in a male-dominated society; Moral (1982), which offered a nuanced commentary on the expectations and burdens placed onwomen’s shoulders against which they explore their desires and navigate their shifting place in society; Karnal (1983), where the perverse entanglement of paternalism, desire, and drive for control results in a violent tragedy; Milagros (1997), where she moved away from pointed advocacies and delved instead on an enigmatic exploration of feminine desire and innocence; Sa Pusod ng Dagat (1998), which further explored the complex meaning of womanhood; Jose Rizal (1998), the biopic of the national hero; Muro-Ami (1999), portrayed the lives of exploited children in the illegal practice of reef hunting; Bagong Buwan (2001), endeavored to tell a fair and informed story about war-torn Muslim Mindanao; and Noon at Ngayon: Pagsasamang Kay Ganda (2003), which tells the story of four middle-aged women who have weathered life’s storms and reconciled with their pasts.
Ricardo Lee also known as Ricky Lee is a screenwriter for film and television, journalist, playwright, and a multi-awarded fictionist who published several novels, plays, essays, and short story collections along his screenplays and screenwriting manuals. He has demonstrated his mastery of writing historical films, literary and true-to-life adaptations, political, courtroom, and dramas, the stories of “outsiders” and marginalized figures such as laborers, prostitutes, rebels, migrant workers, and gay people, and his consistent elevation of all manner of genre fare, from horror to tearjerkers to comedies. Lee emerged in screenwriting in the late 1970s as part of the generation of filmmakers who ushered the “Second Golden Age of Philippine Cinema.”
Nora Cabaltera Villamayor, also known as Nora Aunor, has been in different fields for more than four decades—film, television, music, and stage. Her journey to fame started when she joined and won a local amateur singing contest in a radio program called “Darigold Jamboree”. She came to be known as the girl with the “golden voice” with the unique tone of her voice. It was Tower Productions that gave her the biggest break: the title role in D’ Musical Teenage Idols, opposite Tirso Cruz III. Sampaguita Pictures’ 34th-anniversary presentation was also a Nora-Tirso starrer, Fiesta Extravaganza, and that is when people began referring to her as “Superstar”. Succeeding years would see her taking on a wide variety of movie projects, showing her versatility by making comedies, melodramas, and musicals. Her extensive filmography with 170 films is not only matched but exceeded by the number of awards and citations she has received from local and international organizations.
Dr. Gémino H. Abad is a writer, critic, scholar, literary historian, and anthologist with numerous books and literary awards including ten poetry volumes, nine volumes of literary criticism, two volumes on his own poetics, two short story collections, a five-volume historical anthology of Philippine poetry in English, and a six-volume anthology of Philippine short stories in English, from 1956 (the year where the late Leopoldo Yabes’ anthology left off) to 2009. Several of these books have received national literary awards such as the Gawad Dangal ng Lahi given by the Carlos Palanca Memorial Foundation; the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for his poetry; the CCP Award for Poetry; the Ani ng Dangal Award of the NCCA; the UMPIL’s Gawad Alagad ni Balagtas for lifetime achievement in poetry and literary criticism; the Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinangan sa Larangan ng Panitikan from the City of Maynila; the Manila Critics’ Circle National Book Award for poetry, for anthology, for personal anthology; and the Philippines Free Press Literary Awards for the short story, essay, and poetry.
Professor Emeritus Fides Cuyugan-Asensio’s more than six decades of involvement with the art of opera displays her dedication and passion to bringing inaccessible Western dramatic idiom into Philippine theaters for the Filipino opera enthusiasts to experience and learn from. She’s dedicated to opera and musical theater, which enriched the Philippine artistic scene. Her exceptional achievements in many years of exemplary service to the field such as performing, teaching, producing, and directing opera and theater productions, contributed to a Renaissance of classical musical theater in the country. Her performance of Sisa in Felipe de Leon’s Noli Me Tangere became a hallmark in the country’s musical theater history.
Antonio “Tony” Mabesa, known as the Lion of the Theater, was a director, actor, and teacher who greatly contributed to the growth and diversity of Philippine theater. His theater teaching, formalism as aesthetics, and methods of production have made an impact on his students. He was a professor, artist and mentor who will be remembered for his lessons on discipline, commitment and respect for theater.
The Order of National Artists (Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining) is the highest national recognition given to Filipino individuals who have made significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts; namely, Music, Dance, Theater, Visual Arts, Literature, Film, Broadcast Arts, and Architecture and Allied Arts. The order is jointly administered by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and conferred by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation by both institutions.
The Order of National Artists was established by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 1001 dated April 27, 1972 to give appropriate recognition and prestige to Filipinos who have distinguished themselves and made outstanding contributions to Philippine arts and letters. The order is jointly administered by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and conferred by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation by both institutions.
The National Artist Award is given every three years by the President of the Philippines in the month of June. To date, there are a total of 81 National Artists, including those newly proclaimed.
Tickets for the public will be given starting 3 PM at the CCP Ramp.
In observance of health and safety guidelines, those attending the event are advised to read the CCP protocols for Alert Level 1: https://bit.ly/CCPNewNormal.
