Tanghalang Pilipino (Philippine Theater) is the leading exponent of Philippine theater and the resident drama company of the Cultural Center of the Philippines since its organization in 1987.[1] It has successfully presented hundreds of productions over more than 30 theater seasons,[2] earning numerous awards and citations while generating one of the best attendance records among the CCP's resident companies.[3] Show Tanghalang Pilipino wishes to develop and train actors, playwrights, and designers with special emphasis in the production of original Filipino plays. By staging plays from the repertoire of Philippine past and plays in translation from other countries, TP hopes to bring to the experience of both artists and audience the best of Philippine and global theatre tradition. It looks forward to educating and awakening the cultural consciousness of the Filipino audiences through its regular performances and other related activities like workshops, symposia and interactions.[1] The Tanghalang Pilipino season runs from July to March.[3] Off season, TP finalizes theater project proposals for a cause. In 2013, along with UNICEF and the AIDS Society, TP aimed to disseminate correct information about the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Using theater as a medium, an original play and workshops about HIV/AIDS were made available in Manila, Cebu and Davao.[4] In 2020, stage productions were prematurely closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. TP launched a program billed as PansamanTANGHALAN (a portmanteau of Filipino words pansamantala and tanghalan that means 'temporary theater') on digital platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. It is also a part of an ongoing online fundraising project called Open House for the benefit of the Performing Arts community, which has been dramatically hit by the pandemic.[5] Felix "Nonon"Padilla was TP's founding artistic director from 1987 to 2000, directing most of its plays. He was succeeded by Herbert Go, 2001-06; and Dennis Marasigan, 2006-08.[6] Its current Artistic Director is veteran actor-teacher Fernando “Tata Nanding” Josef.[7] References
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1The culture of the Philippines, an island country in the South-East Asia, represents a huge range of very outstanding and fascinating traditions. Nevertheless, for anyone who would like to discuss the issue of the Filipino contemporary theatre, the difficult and very complicated postcolonial history of the country appears as one of the main challenges. The Philippines were first colonized by Spain (1565-1898) and later (in the 20th century) by the USA. People in the Philippines used to say that they had spent 350 years in the convent and 50 years in Hollywood. But as long as we can speak about a strong influence, which both of those countries had on the Filipino nation and culture, we cannot forget that we can never speak about the entire removal of local traditions and aesthetics.
2Most scholars (both in the Philippines and in foreign countries), who try to describe Philippine theatre, divide those dramas and performances into three groups: the indigenous theatre, the theatre based/founded on Spanish colonization, and the theatre influenced (in the 20th century) by the Americans.1 3I would like to propose in this article a different perspective, a discussion on two kinds of Philippine theatre identities: the first one, the group identity (national, social, political etc.), and the second one, the individual identity (of one actor/one particular performance group), where all of those three kinds of theatre traditions exist. I do believe there is plenty of tensions between the group identity and the individual identity, and each must be seen as the important element of the second one. 4This essay does not tend to be a brief introduction, a full guide through Filipino §theatre traditions. It should be rather seen as another voice in a wide discussion about the state of contemporary theatre in the Philippines, the theatre of a country which shares with many others the experience of being postcolonial, but in the same time it keeps its uniqueness and must be considered under its own particular history. 5However, it should be admitted that this research has been made by a Polish theatre scholar, who was raised up in a different social and cultural environment (not in the Philippines) and who tried to understand a different theatre reality and tradition, being always aware of her “alien” perspective. 6Moreover, in this article the term “theatre” will not only refer to particular plays staged in official theatre buildings in the Philippines. I would rather prefer to speak about the “theatricality”, the notion of culture shown by the theatre pieces. 1. What does it mean “the Filipino theatre”?7One of the most difficult questions is how the “actor” is categorized and understood in the context of Philippine theatre. Considering the fact that the Philippine nation still needs to deal with its postcolonial identity, terms, such as “theatre” or “actor”, based on the Western cultural tradition, cannot be easily taken for granted. 8In the postcolonial reality it is impossible to distinct the “original tradition” from the one “influenced” by foreign cultures. The postcoloniality might preconceive that particular tradition is a kind of amalgamation, where original roots have been changed and influenced under hundred years of foreign colonial rules. Then, after the process of decolonization, identity must be re-established and rebuilt on the new foundation, where even the most simple question, such as «what our past does contain?», may provoke particular problems. 9James F. Kenny in Tagalog Movies and Identity. Portrayals of the Filipino Self focuses on the issue of Filipino identity in the context of the cinema. His article shows how the fact of being a postcolonial nation projects particular questions about the self-identity:
10We can find similar approaches when we try to speak about postcolonial Filipino theatre, where the inner negotiation of being a (post)colonial country is still vivid. However, this kind of questioning the “postcolonial identity” assumes that the contemporary culture might be seen as the “authentic” one or, on the other hand, “polluted” by foreign influences.3 11I personally believe, that any kind of “searching for the authenticity” is a very tricky attitude, especially in the postcolonial (and highly globalized) world, where many traditions interfere. To rise up a question, if something is “authentic” or “polluted”, is supposed to mean, that someone is able to set up the intransgressible features of a particular culture.
12A good example of how the postcolonial “inheritance” affects today the culture of the Philippines can be found in the issue of mestizo. Anyone who lived (even for a short period of time) in the Philippines might have caught a glimpse of a particular tendency. Most of the famous Filipinos – especially actors who work in television productions (the “Pilipino stars”) – tend to have a particular appearance. What is the most coveted is the fair skin. On the market there is a whole range of cosmetic products – soaps, creams, make-up foundation – which make the skin brighter. However, the desire to look as mestizo/mestiza should be seen in the contemporary context rather than as a cultural tendency. A similar trend can be observed e.g. in Europe, even if Europeans behave in a quite opposite way, most of the people try to be as much suntanned as possible. Nevertheless, one should not forget that the roots of mestizo appearance are traced back to the Spanish colonial caste system, related to i.a. taxation purposes. Since the Philippines won the independence from Spain, all the citizens started to be called “Filipino”, and any racial differentiation became officially forbidden. What surprises even more, is the fact that we may find people, who think that their “mestizo look” can destine their artistic career per se.4 13Even though one would like to distinguish the original “Philippine-ness” or “Filipino self”, or to find out “the Filipino roots”, it should not been forgotten that every culture is shaped in a long-time process; it is not an artefact, a “monument” – once designed and set up – but it is always performed by a particular group of people, in an intensively changed and vivid process, very responsive to social, political and economic tensions.
14The second half of the 20th century (especially after the fall of Marcos government in 1986)5 was the time when many Philippine scholars and artists started to ask about their national identity. After several centuries of being dominated and ruled by Spanish, and later American colonizers, who not only tried to set up their own religion as the major one (with Spain Catholicism, with the USA mostly Protestantism),6 or some forms of culture expressions (e.g. Spain introduced theatre forms like i.a. sarsuela, the USA actors’ style mostly shaped in Hollywood), but first of all: the language and the educational system. That is why there is no simple answer for the question if the Philippine culture should been seen more as the “Asian” or more as the “Western” one. 15Sir Anril Pineda Tiatco’s article Situating Philippine Theatricality in Asia. A Critique on the Asian-ness/Philippine-ness of Philippine Theatre(s) is, in my personal opinion, one of the most important voices in the contemporary discussion about the identity of Filipino theatre. Tiatco shows that the binary system – Asian vs. Western tradition – is a cul-de-sac for anyone, who would like to analyse and make a research on the theatre tradition in the Philippines. If one considers Filipino theatre as the “Asian”, he/she assumes that “Asian culture” is a homogenized, essential form, that culture of e.g. the Philippines and Iraq belongs to the same aesthetic system. According to Tiatco:
16Personally I believe that the plural form, proposed in Situating Philippine Theatricality in Asia. A Critique on the Asian-ness/Philippine-ness of Philippine Theatre(s), sheds new light on the issue of Filipino postcolonial identity. The fact of being colonized in the past cannot be seen as the reason to perceive the country’s culture a less “Filipino” nowadays. The requirement of being – so called authentic and pure (in this meaning to choose the “Philippine-ness” instead of the “Philippine-nesses”) – occludes the artistic freedom of self-expression and the independence of a particular artist. 2. Sacral performances and the question of the performer’s individualism
17In the Philippines one may find a long and very diverse tradition of cultivating sacral performances. Especially Christmas and the Holy Week, of course for the Christian communities,8 is the most important time within the year, when the majority of inhabitants of particular barangay9 or town work together to cultivate special, religious and sacral dedicated, theatre forms. 18However, theatre forms like the Passion play re-enactment, or the pabasa (reading/chanting of the Passion) might be considered as the “inheritance” of Spanish colonization, we should not forget about its postcolonial identity, so also its inner diversity and the tension of the “Philippine-nesses” included. 19In my personal opinion, one of the most important foundation for Filipino society is the need for solidarity and cooperation in micro and macro-communities. The role of the family, as well as any other kind of community, is visible both in everyday life and in any sort of extraordinary celebration. Of course, I do not claim that in Filipino society there is no space left for individualism, but in this case, I would like to emphasize the importance of the community notion. 20Besides many other reasons, those who prepare and who participate in sacral performances try to express their religious commitment and to follow the tradition, which bond together a particular community. As long as one of the main features of the tradition is its inner resistance for too precipitate changes, it stays alive only when it responses to the present reality. In this meaning, sacral performances have been constantly changing and their display has been always negotiated within the community.
21I would like to describe also two examples of Filipino sacral performances, (both of them can be considered as postcolonial, as a result of Spanish Christianisation),10 where the individual identity of the performer/actor struggles with the group identity. But before I elaborate this issue, it must be underlined that, although particular items (costumes, a light-set, often a scenery) used in sacral performances refer to the theatre tradition, we should be aware, that the “doer”/“performer”11 cannot be easily considered just as the theatre “actor”. Sacral performances refer to religious rituals and the religious vow, to the sacral sphere of “communication” with God. The theatre settings should be rather seen as the medium, the tool to express the religious involvement of a particular person or the whole community.
22The Catholic ritual of pabasa is the chanting/reading of life, passion, death and resurrection of Christ, which take place during the Holy Week.12 Most of the time it is organised by local religious organizations, performed either by two chanters or two groups of chanters. As long as it is assumed as a group activity, it should be considered by every member as his/her personal vow. Even though it is an activity of the whole community, in some cases we can find out that it turns into a kind of competition for the performers. Each performer tries to create a piece of art, not only for God, but also for the whole community.
23Moreover, especially in recent years, people try to change the old tradition and to make it more suitable for the younger generation. One of the most curious examples is the rap version of performing the pabasa.13
24Another case is the sinakulo (named also cenakulo or senákulo), a Filipino traditional Passion play, performed in the majority of Catholic communities during the Semana Santa (the Holy Week). In 1955, in San Fernando Cutud (Pampanga province), Ricardo Navarro (often called also Tatang Temyong) wrote his own version of the Passion play, Via Crucis o Passion y Muerte. This drama became for the local community a foundation for a performance, in which one can participate also today. However, in 1961 Navarro decided to intensify his panata (the religious vow) by performing during the sinakulo the self-flagellation (pamagdarame). The following year, Tatang Temyong became the first Filipino who crucified himself and in the next decades he has found many followers. On every Good Friday this little town in Pampanga is crowded by people (Filipinos, as well as foreign tourists) who would like to participate in (or just watch) the performance of the self-flagellators, sinakulo, and people being crucified in Kalbaryo.14 25The decision to deepen the religious vow may be considered as the transgression of the tradition. The personal choice of Ricardo Navarro, however negotiated within the community, has completely changed the way of thinking how the Good Friday is supposed to be celebrated. 3. Social and political commitment26The 20th century in the Philippines has been strongly marked by political events. It was the time of the fight for national independence and in the same way the beginning of contemporary discussion on postcolonial Filipino identity. The fight did not only concern the decolonization process (from Spain and later from USA), but also more domestic problems, e.g. how the country and the nation should be leaded after the overthrow of Marcos’ rule. 27Among many other scholars, Pamela Del Rosario Castrillo points out that the second half of 20th century for the Filipino culture was the time of being strongly inspired by the theatre tradition of Bertold Brecht (and his concept of Lehrstücke) and Augusto Boal (Theatre of the Oppressed). However, the biggest input, I would argue, should be rather seen in the intellectual inspiration, in the new way of thinking about theatre as an important tool in the fight for political and social changes. 28In my personal opinion, the most significant changes should not be easily considered just as a result of staging particular plays e.g. of Brecht (Philippine Educational Theater Association’s translations of The Good Woman of Setzuan, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Life of Galileo), but rather as the effect of a long-time process of adaptation, reinterpretation and application of foreign theatre concepts in the field of a local theatre. According to Pamela Del Rosario Castrillo:
29But if the main reason to create a political theatre is the social change, is there any space left for the actor to focus on his/her own identity? That means, what is more important in the political theatre, the individual or the group identity?
30I do not assume, that in the theatre practice, which tends to be political, revolutionary and calling for social and/or governmental changes there is no space left for the individual identity of a particular actor, director or playwright. Names like Aurelio Tolentino, Juan Abad or Juan Matapang Cruz (well-known playwrights, who created at the turn of the 19th and the 20th century, the time of the fight against Spanish and later American oppression)16 are not to be ever forgotten.
31But of course Filipino political theatre did not end up by the time of the “seditious plays”.17 As I mentioned above, the second half of the 20th century (and the fight for full independence and democracy) should be also seen as a very crucial moment.
32The 1960s – or especially the “Theater of Social Concern” (1965-1968) according to Del Rosario Castrillo18 – became a crucial moment for those theatre practitioners who questioned themselves about their own goal in the fight for real social and political change:
33Even “simple” things as deciding if a particular play should be staged in English or in Tagalog, Cebuano or Ilocano became meaningful.20 It is worth pointing this out, that this kind of decision is constantly undertaken even today. English language has not been seen any more as the definitive choice for Filipino theatre makers as it was before. 34In the context of questioning the national self-identity, as well as about the tension between the individual and the group artistic identity, Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, the Filipino “culture caregiver”, might be a good example. In 1967 this young Filipino woman, who studied in the USA, came back to her country and created one of the most significant Filipino theatre group ever. The Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) became:
35This group, and its social and political concern, did not end up with i.e. the fall of Marcos government. Until now, PETA has created ca. 400 performances, made by hundreds of the most important Filipino actors and directors. Nowadays PETA leads several theatre educational programs (i.a. The School of People’s Theater), trains young people (PETA Metropolitan Teen Theater League Program, Children’s Theater Program, Arts Zone Project) and first of all, its performing arm – the Kalinangan Ensemble – regularly stages plays in the PETA Theater Center in Quezon City.22
36However, the PETA’s educational impact in contemporary Filipino culture is incontrovertible, in the context of this particular article the question of the individual identity of those artists, who created their performances in Dulaang Rajah Sulayman, or later in the PETA Theater Center,23 should be risen up. PETA has always been concerned rather as a theatre group than a constellation of Filipino stars. For all of those artists, who worked together in those hundreds of performances, the common aim was to achieve social and/or political changes. Even if we would like to point out particular actors or directors, PETA’s activity will be always seen as the group cooperation. 37The social and political commitment requires from artists to focus rather on the collaborative goal, and to shape together the group identity, then to centre upon his/her own shine. |
Describe the philippine theatre industry what is your impression about theatrical presentations
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