Philippine Ballet Theater's Heritage

14-15 May, 2008; 8:00p.m. Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater)

Labaw Dongon
One of the two related epics from Panay Island in the Visayas and is a fragment of the longer epic "Hinalawod." It is the story of Labaw Dongon's adventure in pursuing his three wives. His triumph with Abyang Ginbitinan his first wife had born a son Asu Manga and to his successful pursue of Anggoy Doronoon again gave him another son Baranugun.

Sarimanok
It is based on a popular epic among the Muslim in Southern Philippines. The Dance-Drama revolves around a hero. Prince Indarapatra, whose search for the Moon Goddess leads to adventure, duels with fantastic creatures and a final heroic conquest.

For ticket and inquiries, please call the CCP Box Office at tel. no. 832-3704 or Ticketworld at National Bookstore branches or Tower Records at tel. no. 891-9999. Visit the CCP Website: www.culturalcenter.gov.ph

Conversations in Bronze: Adamson University’s Jubilee Sculpture

Adamsonians have come to love and identify with it—a favourite spot for a barkada’s mobile phone or digicam shoot and definitely an aesthetic accent in the otherwise plain SV building front grounds. But more than a year after its formal unveiling last February 7, 2007, with no media report on it in sight, the art scene is pretty clueless about its existence.

To mark its 75th founding anniversary, Adamson University commissioned award-winning sculptor Priscillano “Jun” Vicaldo, Jr. to do a four-figure bronze sculpture that would show the University’s Greek and Vincentian heritage as well as the passing on of that legacy to the millennial generation and beyond. In the mis-en-scene that the artist presented in a clay model and which was approved and eventually adopted in the final version, St. Vincent de Paul—the School’s Patron Saint and founder of the Congregation of the Mission or the Vincentians—is shown talking to a male college student and an elementary schoolgirl. Formally attired and standing in a casual pose behind the college student is the founder of Adamson University Dr. George Lucas Adamson. While the group sculpture is an attempt to portray a lively dialogue that centers on the institutional vision and mission of the University, it is also designed as an interactive piece of artwork where viewers may sit on the unoccupied parts of the benches or stand beside the figures and be a part of the action.

Adamson University was founded in 1932 by Dr. George Lucas Adamson, a Greek chemist. It was turned over to the Vincentians in 1964 and has been a Catholic institution from thereon. The sculpture is a donation of Chicago-based twin alumni Manny and Marc Aguja, the former an immigration lawyer and an Outstanding Adamsonian awardee in 2007, the latter a CPA. The University contracted the project to Artasia, Inc. of which the artist is a partner.

Fiesta ng Musikang Filipino

(Press Release From CCP)
Cultural Center of the Philippines in cooperation of
Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office presents Fiesta Ng Musikang Filipino (FMF). An OPM Chronicle for the benefit of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines' Project of the John Mary Vianney Galilee Dev't. and Retreat Center for Priests in Tagaytay City on 2-4 May, 2008; 8:00p.m. at Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater). Artists to join the event are:
The Manila Philharmonic Orchestra, Juan Dela Cruz (Wally Gonzalez, Joey "Pepe" Smith, Mike Hanopol), Lucia Micarelli, Sugarfree, Sinosikat, Radioactive Sago Project, The Jerks, The Dawn, Updharma Down, etc.

For tickets and inquiries, please call the CCP Box Office at tel. no. 832-3704 or Ticketworld at National Bookstore branches or Tower Records at tel. no. 891-9999. Visit the CCP Website: www.culturalcenter.gov.ph.

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Happy Birthday to our Angel!

One of the most sought-after local celebrities at this contemporary time, Angel Locsin, celebrates her 23rd birthday today. Even before jumping to another TV network, she made some sort of a tradition of celebrating the special day with kids who are special to her. These kids are the less fortunate. Because they need care, she's shown willingness to lend hers.

This year, her guests are 300 kids from the slums of Payatas, Quezon City. She wore her disguise so that kids won't recognize her easily, but it seemed her trick didn't work perfectly as some still recognized her.

She gathered the kids and brought them to McDonald's branch to have fun. Of course, what kind of event will it be without pictorials? The kids for sure had a great time with their idol.

You might ask why she's doing this? She'll simply say that these kids are close to her heart.

Some fans might hate her for transferring to the enemy's camp, but for these kids, she's a true angel. She really deserves the name.

Maybe we can do something like that too.

So before this day ends, let's greet her a happy birthday. Happy Birthday, Angel!

Congratulations Batch 2008!

We salute the new batch of graduates for this school year. You have just finished one of the most challenging stages of your youthful and colorful life. Consider this as a milestone which shall lead you to greater opportunities.

Gone are the days when you have to sleep late until the roosters start to crow. Gone are the days when you have to cram for your 5 major exams in a day. Gone are the days when you have to think of a reason for your parents to allow you to go to a group study. Gone are the days when all you do is stare at your professor during class. You may only be interested in going to school because of your 'baon'.

You are now on your own. You can now decide for yourself. Do you want to work abroad or stay here? What will be the path that you'd like to go to? You may be a future CEO of a large company. You may be one of the people we always see in headline news after showing your latest masterpiece. You may be one of the people younger people look up to.

These are all we request from you. Don't be a burden to the society. Don't put your country to shame. Don't be afraid to share what you know. If you're going to marry, don't leave your partner. Love them for who they are. Be a good parent to them.

Be an agent of change. Follow what your heart desires. Make a difference. Excel in your chosen fields. Look back to where you came from. They deserve something from you. You can be a hero in your own little way. Be a good citizen. Be a good example. Help make others feel good about themselves.

We have a lot of requests, eh? We just want the good for everybody. Now, come on and make us all proud!

Palanca Awards Deadline

The Palanca Awards or Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature is the Philippines' most prestigious and most enduring literary awards and is dubbed as the "Pulitzer Prize" of the Philippines. Most, if not all, important or major Philippine authors have one or more Palancas in their belts. For some, especially to a young fictionist or poet, winning a Palanca is a sort of a "baptism of fire" denoting or announcing that one has arrived in Philippine literary circles.

History

Don Carlos Palanca Sr. was a man who by the sheer dint of hard work, self-study, and integrity rose to become a successful businessman. He was a patron of educational institutions and instilled in his children the value of education. His heirs decided it fitting that his name be commemorated in an endeavor that would help enrich the country's cultural heritage. Thus, the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature was established in 1950.

The aims of the awards have been to help develop Philippine literature by providing incentives for writers to craft their most outstanding literary work; and to be a treasury of the Philippines' literary gems from Filipino writers and to assist in its eventual dissemination to the people, particularly the students.
The awards started with the Short Story category in English and Filipino (Tagalog).
Through the years, as the awards elicited overwhelming response, new categories were added: One-Act Play in 1953, Poetry in 1963, Full-Length Play in 1975, Essay in 1979, Novel in 1980, Short Story for Children in 1989, Teleplay in 1990, and Screenplay in 1994.

In 1997, three new divisions were opened. These were the Iloko, Cebuano and Hiligaynon Short Story. To encourage writing by our youth, the Kabataan (Youth) Essay for high school students was opened in 1998. And in 2000, a new category was added: Future Fiction, a separate genre of the short story that involves a looking beyond into the future to transcend the boundaries of the present.

The harvest of literary works is just as impressive. As of year 2000, it has a collection of 28 novels, 12 in English and 16 in Filipino; 128 three-act plays, 54 in English and 74 in Filipino; 289 one-act plays, 131 in English and 158 in Filipino; 300 groups of poems, 162 in English and 138 in Filipino; 142 essays, 70 in English and 72 in Filipino; 367 Short Stories, 167 in English, 164 in Filipino, 12 in Cebuano, 12 in Iloko, and 12 in Hiligaynon; 85 short stories for children, 43 in English and 42 in Filipino; 42 Teleplays, 5 in English and 37 in Filipino; 22 Screenplays all in Filipino; 18 Kabataan Essays, 9 in English and 9 in Filipino; 6 Future Fiction, 3 in English and 3 in Filipino.

The Carlos Palanca Foundation regularly publishes anthologies of winning works, with each anthology covering all winning literary pieces of a certain category (e.g. Short Story in English) in a decade (e.g. the 1980s).

As of 2000, the Director General of the Awards is Sylvia Palanca-Quirino.

Contest rules

The contest is open from January to April 30 of the year. It is open to all Filipino citizens, or former Filipino citizens, of all ages except current officers and employees of the Carlos Palanca Foundation, Inc., the sponsor.

Divisions and categories

There are five divisions in the awards: English, Filipino, Hiligaynon, Iluko and Cebuano. The contest has ten regular categories: literary novel (open only every three years), Futuristic Fiction, Short story, Short Story for Children, Essay, Poetry, One-act Play, Full-length Play, Teleplay, and Screenplay. The Kabataan Essay is a special category open to persons below 18 years of age.

The categories are open both in the English and Filipino divisions except the Teleplay and Screenplay categories which are open only in the Filipino division. The Hiligaynon, Iluko and Cebuano divisions are open only in the Short Story category. A translation of an entry submitted in one division shall not be eligible in any other division.
Authors may submit only one entry per category. A work which has been awarded a prize in another contest is not qualified for the awards. Published/produced works which were first published or first produced between May 1 of the previous year and April 30 of the current year and/or unpublished/unproduced works may be entered in the contest except in the Screenplay category where only unproduced works may be entered.

The entry

In the Novel category, the theme is open and free. There is no limit as to the number of pages of the entry.

In the Short Story category, an entry must be at least ten but not more than 25 typewritten pages. In the Short Story for Children category, an entry must be not more than 10 typewritten pages. It may deal with any subject, provided it is directed principally to promote appreciation of Filipino literature or culture by children in the grade school level, ages 7 to 12. In the Futuristic Fiction category, an entry must consist of at least 10 but not more than 25 typewritten pages and should present a scenario of the future Filipino and the country.

In the Poetry category, an entry must consist of a collection of at least 10 but not more than 15 poems.

In the Essay category, an entry should be at least 10 but not more than 25 typewritten pages. The category is open only to informal (personal) essays.

In the One-Act Play category, an entry must be of sufficient length to approximate a performing time of 45 minutes. In the Full-Length Play category, an entry must consist of 2 or more acts.

In the Teleplay category, an entry when produced for television presentation, must have a maximum running time of 1 hour. Sitcoms and dramas depicting socially relevant themes are preferred. In the Screenplay category, the entry must be a script for a full-length film with a running time of approximately 2 hours. The theme is open, but should inspire the viewer with moral values.

The Kabataan Essay category is open only to informal (personal) essays. The Essay must develop the given theme for the year for the English and Filipino divisions. An entry must be at least 4 but not more than 5 typewritten pages, and must carry an original title.
All entries shall consist of an original and three copies. Each entry must be typewritten or computerized, double-spaced on 8 ½" X 11" bond paper, with approximately one-inch margin on all sides. The page number must be typed consecutively e.g. 1 of 30, 2 of 30 and so on at the center of the bottom margin of each page. If computerized, the font should be Arial, Times New Roman or Book Antiqua and the font size should be 12. A soft copy (diskette copy or e-mail) of computer-generated entries is also required. The author's real name, and address must not appear on the entry. The duly accomplished Official Entry Form and notarized Authorization Form together with the author's full resumé should be sealed inside a legal size letter envelope. The title of the entry, category, and division should be written or typed on the envelope, and the envelope attached to an original copy of the entry. In case an entry from abroad wins, an authenticated copy of the Authorization Form by the Philippine Embassy or Consulate will be required.

All copies should be legible and neat. Entries must be addressed to the Board of Judges, Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature, which shall be the sole body to evaluate the literary merits of the works. Entries should be submitted to the Carlos Palanca Foundation, Inc. office at Ground Floor, CPJ Building, 105 C. Palanca Jr. St., Legaspi Village, Makati City, Philippines not later than 12:00 m.n. of April 30 of the year. Entries sent by mail or courier should be postmarked/invoiced not later than April 15 of the year.
Entries submitted via e-mail should be in Rich Text Format (.rtf) or in a Microsoft Word document file and should be sent as an attachment together with the author's bio-data or resumé, and a scanned copy of the accomplished and notarized Authorization Form. The original copy of the notarized Authorization Form should then be sent to the Carlos Palanca Foundation, Inc. by mail or courier not later than April 30 of the year.

Entries submitted via e-mail should be transmitted not later than 12:00 m.n. of April 30 of the year. Submitted copies of winning entries shall remain with, and become the property of, the Carlos Palanca Foundation, Inc. Submitted copies of non-winning entries may be claimed by the authors not later than six months from the date of announcement of winners.

Entries submitted must comply with government policies on printed matters.

Judging of the entries

The Board of Judges shall have the discretion not to award any prize if, in its judgment, no meritorious entry has been submitted. The Sponsor has the sole right to designate the persons who shall constitute the Board of Judges in each of the contest categories.

Announcement of winners

The names of the winners and the members of the Board of Judges shall be announced on September 1 of the year.

Prizes

The prizes for each contest category are the following:

Novel:
Grand prize - P30,000

Short Story, Futuristic Fiction, Poetry, Essay, One–act Play and Short Story for Children, and Teleplay:
First prize - P12,000
Second prize - P9,000
Third prize - P7,000

Full-length Play:
First prize - P17,000
Second prize - P10,000
Third prize - P7,000

Screenplay:
First prize - P27,000
Second prize - P12,000
Third prize - P10,000

Kabataan Essay:
First prize - P8,000
Second prize - P5,000
Third prize - P3,000

(Based on the 2005 Rules of the Contest. The rules may vary every year. For the latest and complete contest rules, contact the Palanca Foundation.)

For official contest form, please visit the Likhaan website at http://www.upd.edu.ph/~icw

Christian Baustista In Search For A Maria

Christian Bautista portrays the role of lovestruck Tony in STAGES' production of the popular Broadway musical West Side Story, which is scheduled to run at Meralco Theater in September-October 2008.

West Side Story is an energetic, melodramatic musical that is a modern-day retelling of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. But instead of feuding families, there are conflicts between rival street gangs and the setting is the Upper West Side of New York City instead of fair Verona.

Christian's leading lady Maria, as well as supporting roles Anita, Bernardo, Riff, among others, have yet to be cast. Open auditions for singers and dancers aged 17-30 will be conducted on March 29-30, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. at Stand Studio, Brahma Building, 172 Mabini Street, Addition Hills, San Juan, Manila.

Maria must be pretty and slim. She has to be a soprano 1, preferably with classical or musical theater voice training.

Anita must be a strong dancer and an alto with impressive acting skills. Bernardo must also be a strong dancer and actor. Riff must be mestizo with a strong dancing and gymnastics background.
The rest of the cast should be a mix of mestizo and Pinoy-looking actors. They must be strong dancers who can sing, preferably with jazz, ballet or hip-hop background.

Aspirants must bring 3R colored photo, resume and minus one CD. Singers must be able to sing a song from any stage musical.

STAGES' production of Broadway's West Side Story is its third major theatrical offering after Footloose The Musical in 2005 and High School Musical On Stage last year.

West Side Story will be marketed in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, where Asian pop idol Christian Bautista has a strong following.

For inquiries, call Judith of STAGES at Tel. No. 818-1111 loc. 225. Fundraising groups, block buyers, and corporate sponsors may call Eva at 0918-9396065.

West Side Story is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI) in New York.