Battle Royale: novel is now a street play

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Yay! My article on the upcoming production of "Battalia Royale" was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer in its Feb. 27, 2012 issue.

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Battle Royale: novel is now a street play
By Walter Ang

Preview of "Battalia Royale" performed earlier this year.

Sipat Lawin Ensemble has collaborated with several Australian playwrights to develop a performance adaptation of "Battle Royale"-the controversial novel by Koushun Takami that  spawned a movie version and a manga version.

"Battle Royale" is set in a dystopian Japan where a classroom of high school students is taken by a totalitarian government to an island and forced to kill each other until only one survivor remains.  Everyone is fitted with a collar that will explode should they try to escape the island or refuse to kill other students.

"The novel explores similar themes in 'Lord of the Flies.' It's a sharp satire on society's need for increasingly visceral entertainment," says SLE artistic director JK Anicoche.

"Our script has three different endings. Every show will have one of the three different ending depending on what happens that night."

This "stage" version (the work is intended for on-site outdoor performances), titled "Battalia Royale," will involve 40 actors.  Bodjie Pascua will play the classroom's teacher.

Page to stage

Students are forced to kill each
other in "Battle (Battalia) Royale."

Anicoche, who spent a year living in Japan, had always wanted to stage the material.  When his group staged David Finnigan's "To Heat You Up and Cool You Down" in Penguin Café, Malate in 2009, he found out Finnigan had been working on an improv routine based on the novel. They began collaborating.

Last year, they included filmmakers Sam Burns-Warr and Georgie McAuley, and writer Jordan Prosser in a month-long collaborative devising process to finalize a script.

"David and the other three playwrights came to Manila using their own money to work with SLE to devise the scenes and script," says Anicoche.  "They would set parameters, our actors would create the scene with Pinoy sensibilities, they wrote accordingly."

Ensemble
Sipat Lawin Ensemble usually performs "deconstructed" works that highlight collaborative development and ensemble acting.  The group usually performs in alternative or non-theater spaces like living rooms, parks, bars, bathrooms, etc.

They recently staged a Tagalog "jejemon" translation of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" retitled as "R'MeoW <3's JHuLEz." The production was performed in a barangay community basketball court, used delivery devices such as rap and fliptop, and had choreography that included hiphop and krumping.

Online and real world
For "Battalia," Anicoche directs.  Jazz band Radioactive Sago Project collaborates with Teresa Barrozo (scorer of Brillante Mendoza's "Kinatay") for the production's sound design.

SLE is also plans on publishing an online database of characters and weapons. (In the movie, the tools assigned to the students were luck of the draw, some getting weapons such as a machine gun and some getting items such as a paper fan.)

After it premieres at the main driveway ramp of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, plans are underway for possible performances in one of the prison cells in Fort Santiago and a warehouse in a yet-to-be-decided location.  For certain productions and performances, the group announces their venues only a few days prior through their online social networking accounts.

"Battalia Royale" runs March 9-11 at a yet-to-be-announced abandoned school in Cubao. Contact 0917-500-8753 or sipatlawin.ensemble@gmail.com or add the group's Facebook page.

Also published online:
http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/36753/battle-royale-novel-and-film-now-a-street-play

What do you think of this production? Share your comments.

Philippine Educational Theater Association's "Thee Na Natuto" Feb. 22-Mar. 7, 2012

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Announcement from Philippine Educational Theater Association

Philippine Educational Theater Association
presents

"Thee Na Natuto: A Sonnets Concert for the Lovesick"
A musical experience that transforms Shakespeare's sonnets into Filipino songs.
Featuring 12 Filipino poets translating the verses (National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera, Pete Lacaba, Joi Barrios, Luna Sicat-Cleto and many more), as well as several artist-musicians composing and performing the tunes.
Feb 22, 29 and Mar 7, 2012
PETA Theater Center Studios

"I, Malvolio"
UK theatre artist Tim Crouch re-imagines "Twelfth Night" through the eyes of Shakespeare's most pent-up steward. is a wild, hilarious and unsettling rant from a man adrift in front of a cruel audience, a man notoriously abused.

Malvolio enters the madness of Shakespeare's comedy and makes it his own. A story of lost dignity, prudery, practical jokes and bullying, this one-man act of storytelling alchemy draws us deep into the madness of Shakespeare's classic comedy.

Showdates TBA

Contact 725-6244, 410-0821 to 22, 0917-5765400 or petatheater@gmail.com.
Visit www.petatheater.com.

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Filipino, American, Japanese productions for campus season-enders

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Yay! My article on the upcoming season enders of campus theater groups was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer in its Feb. 13, 2012 issue.

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Filipino, American, Japanese productions 
for campus season-enders
By Walter Ang

Campus-based theater groups are concluding their respective 2011-2012 seasons.

Tanghalang Ateneo caps its season with Suzue Toshiro's “Fireflies.” a play where several characters are on a lonely search for connection and compassion in contemporary Japanese society.

Using the English Translation by David Goodman, the production will be directed by BJ Crisostomo and TA artistic director Ricardo Abad.

With set design by Ohm David, costumes design by Lhenvil Paneda, lighting design by Jonjon Villareal and sound design by Michiyo Reyes.

Toshiro, Head of Toho College of Music and Drama’s Drama Department, will hold a lecture-discussion on contemporary Japanese theater, open to the public.

Ateneo Blue Repertory closes its 2011-2012 season with a revival of “Bare,” a rock musical about two gay teenagers struggling to find their place in the world as they are about graduate from a Catholic high school.

Music, lyrics and book by Jon Hartmere Jr. and Damon Intrabartolo, Blue Rep first premiered this production in 2009.

Ana Abad-Santos directs with musical direction by Onyl Torres. Set design by Leeroy New, lighting design by John Batalla and costume design by Raven Ong.

ADMU offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts Major in Theater Arts, with concentration in disciplines such as acting, directing or production design. The program has student performances throughout the schoolyear.

“Fireflies” runs Feb. 9-25, 2012 at Rizal Mini-Theater, Ateneo De Manila University, Quezon City. Contact 0920-584-7421. Lecture by Toshiro on Feb. 24, 2012 at Fine Arts Theater Studio. Contact 426-6001 loc. 5331.

“Bare” runs Feb. 29-Mar. 10, 2012 at Teatrino Theater, Greenhills Shopping Center, San Juan. Contact 0916-578-7618 or nicojardin12@yahoo.com.

Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas wraps up its 2011-2012 season with a staging of National Artist for Theater Wilfrido Guerrero's “Forsaken House” in celebration of his birth centennial.

Directed by Tony Mabesa, the play is set in the early 1940s and show the struggles of the controlling Don Ramon and his repressed children.

This is the first time the group will stage this play.

Leo Rialp and Joel Lamangan alternate as Don Ramon while Irma Adlawan and Tess Dumpit alternate as Don Ramon’s submissive wife Encarna.

Guerrero was a prolific playwright whose works were translated into several languages and performed internationally. 

He handled UP’s Dramatic Club as artistic director.  The organization eventually became Dulaang UP.  The theater where he staged most of his productions, then known as Liberal Arts Lecture Hall, was renamed after him in 1976. DUP uses the Guerrero Theater to this day.

With costume design by Eric Pineda, set design by Ohm David and set decoration by Gywn Guanzon, lighting design by Meliton Roxas, music by Boron Garcia, and sound design by Jethro Joaquin.

Dulaang UP is under the university’s Department of Speech Communication and Theater Arts, which offers certificate and degree programs in Theater Arts. Aside from its season line-up, the group also stages its students’ thesis productions under its Dulaang Laboratoryo series throughout the schoolyear.

“The Forsaken House” runs Feb. 15-Mar. 4, 2012 at Wilfrido Guerrero Theater, University of the Philippines, Quezon City. Contact 0917-7500107 or 926-1349.

Also published online:

http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/34725/filipino-american-japanese-productions-for-campus-season-enders

What do you think of this production? Share your comments.

UPLB Samasining's "Articulo Mortis" Feb. 15-18, 2012

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Inihahandog ng
University of the Philippines-Los Baños Samasining
ang

ARTICULO MORTIS
ni Eljay Deldoc

Feb. 15-18, 2012
Dioscoro Umali Hall, University of the Philippines-Los Baños

Direksyon: Ron Biñas
Disenyo ng kasuotan: Carlo Pagunaling
Disenyo ng set: Kulay Labitigan
Disenyo ng ilaw: Ian Bautista

Articulo Mortis is a play that portrays death and its innumerable facets. Through the perspectives of five diverse characters, the play exposes a two-faced irony to this inevitable phenomenon -- where men live, and where men continue to live after dying.

Here is the trailer:

This production is part of:
1st Southern Tagalog Arts Festival

*The Southern Tagalog Arts Festival is a celebratory showcase of the role of the arts in everyday life. This month-long celebration coincides with National Arts Month (February 2012).

The festival aims to serve as a venue to represent not only the classical art forms (literature, painting, sculpture, architecture, music, dance and theater), but also folk arts (weaving, carving, embroidery, rituals) and contemporary art forms (digital photography, computer animation).

Participants to the 1st Southern Tagalog Arts Festival:
Biswal-   visual arts (drawing, painting, printmaking, etc.)
Lilok- plastic arts (sculpture, pottery/ceramics, etc.)
Balay- applied arts (weaving, embroidery, fashion design, interior design, architecture, etc.)
Sulat- written works (poetry, prose, academic research, etc.)
Tanghal- performative arts (theatre, music, dance, oral traditions, rituals and other expressions of belief, etc.)
Usbong- new media art forms (film, video, photography, graphic design, digital art, etc.)

The festival opens with the first Southern Tagalog Studies Conference, highlighting the scholarly study of local historical and cultural heritage as part of recognizing the Tagalog region’s contribution to Philippine culture and the arts.

Week 1
Feb 1: Grand Opening Conference, Dioscoro Umali Hall
Feb 2-4: Para Kay B, Makiling Ballroom Hall, SU Building
Feb 3: Pantas Writers Forum, 1 pm, Dioscoro Umali Hall

Week 2
Feb 6: If I Were A Voice; Dioscoro Umali Hall
Feb 7: Tagpuan sa Katimugan, Sining Makiling Gallery
Feb 8-11: Selebrasyon: Paghahabi ng Kwerdas ng Buhay, Dioscoro Umali Hall

Week 3
Feb 15-18: Artikulo Mortis, Dioscoro Umali Hall

Week 4
Feb 20: Papet Kalikasan, Dioscoro Umali Hall
Feb 22: Pelikultura: The CALABARZON Film Festival, DL Umali
Feb 23-24: Movements Guitar Concert, NCAS Auditorium

Week 5
Feb 27-28: Surtido: Indayog ng Kulturang Tagalog
Feb 29: Closing Concert, Baker Hall

What do you think of this production? Share your comments.

Ballet Philippines' "Pusong Wagas" Feb. 17-19, 2012

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Announcement from Ballet Philippines

Ballet Philippines’ “Pusong Wagas” perfect for Valentine’s weekend

Ballet Philippines ends its 42nd Season with undying love in the all-new contemporary ballet, “Pusong Wagas” on Feb.17-19 at the CCP Little Theater.

BP resident choreographer Alden Lugnasin creates his original contemporary ballet based on the legend of the city of Mandaluyong, with libretto by Nicolas Pichay and original music by Cynthia Alexander.

Set in pre-colonial Manila, the story highlights the exemplary love of Luyong, a gifted carpenter, and Manda, a tribal princess, and their sacrifice in the face of the coming foreign invaders.

This work is co-produced by the City of Mandaluyong and Hon. Mayor Benjamin Abalos Jr.

Tickets are at P600 to P1000, with performance dates on February 17 and 18 at 3 PM and 8 PM, and February 19 at 10 AM and 3 PM. Student and senior citizen discounts apply.

For tickets call Ticketworld at 891-9999; Ballet Philippines at 551-1003, 551-7919, 624-5701; CCP Box Office at 832-3704. Visit www.balletphilippines.org or Facebook.com/balletphilippines.

What do you think of this production? Share your comments.

9 Works Theatrical's "You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown" Feb. 11-Mar. 3, 2012

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Announcement from 9 Works Theatrical

From left: Gaba as Schroeder, Guevarra as Charlie Brown,
Laurel as Linus, Guevarra-Laforteza as Lucy,
Plantado-Tiongson as Sally, and Martinez as Snoopy.

9 Works Theatrical
presents
the Tony award-winning musical
YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN


Feb. 11-Mar. 3, 2012
Carlos Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza Bldg., Makati City



Based on the Comic Strip “Peanuts” by Charles M. Schulz, with Book, Music, and Lyrics by Charles Gesner, Additional Dialogue by Michael Mayer, Additional Music and Lyrics by Andrew Lippa, Original Direction by Michael Mayer, and originally produced in New York by Arthur Whitelaw and Gene Persson,


Charlie Brown can’t seem to get his kite in the air nor win the heart of the elusive Little Red-Haired Girl.
Lucy is a bossy, crabby little tyrant who is convinced that she'll be Queen someday.
Lucy’s all-time crush is the sensitive piano-playing, Beethoven-admiring Schroeder.
Sally, Charlie Brown’s little sister, is troubled over getting a “D” in last week’s homework.
Meanwhile, Snoopy, Charlie Brown’s wise-cracking yet lovable dog, and Linus, Charlie Brown’s blanket-toting best friend, daydream all day.
Everyone figures out what happiness means.


Cast
Robbie Guevara as Charlie Brown
Lorenz Martinez as Snoopy
Carla Guevara-Laforteza as Lucy
Mio Infante/Franco Laurel/Toff de Venecia as Linus
Sweet Plantado-Tiongson as Sally Brown
Tonipet Gaba as Schroeder

Artistic team
Michael Williams (Director)

Toff de Venecia (Assistant Director)
Sweet Plantado-Tiongson (Musical Director – Vocals)
Joseph Tolentino (Musical Director – Instrumentation)
Deana Aquino (Choreographer)
Mio Infante (Scenographer)
Martin Esteva (Lighting Designer)
Chuck Ledesma (Sound Designer)
Mio Infante and Twinkle Zamora (Costume Designers)

Contact 557-5860, 586-7105 or 0917-5545560 or email info@9workstheatrical.com

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Repertory Philippines' "Leading Ladies" Feb. 10-Mar. 4, 2012

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Announcement from Repertory Philippines

Repertory Philippines
presents
its second offering for 2012
the hit comedy
“Leading Ladies”
By Ken Ludwig


“Leading Ladies” is about Leo and Jack, two British actors whose careers are so far on the skids that they’re performing “Scenes from Shakespeare” on the Moose Lodge circuit in Pennsylvania’s Amish country. They think their luck might change, however, when they hear about Florence, an old lady in a nearby town who is about to die and leave a considerable legacy to her nephews from England.

Leo convinces Jack that they should impersonate the heirs. Their foolproof plan hits a snag, though, when they arrive on the scene and realize the woman’s long-lost relatives are nieces and not nephews.


Feb. 10-Mar. 4, 2012
at Onstage, Greenbelt 1, Makati City.

Headlining “Leading Ladies” are James Stacey as Leo and Topper Fabregas as Jack. Supporting them are Cris Villonco as Meg, Giannina Ocampo as Audrey, Jamie Wilson as Duncan, Juno Henares as Florence, Hans Eckstein as Butch and Oliver Usison as Doc.

Directed by Michael Williams
Set design by Denis Lagdameo
Lighting design by John Batalla

Contact 5716926 or 5714941 or email info@repertory.ph.
Tickets also available at 8919999 or www.ticketworld.com.ph.
Visit www.repertory.ph, subscribe to youtube.com/repertoryphils, add “Rep Phils” in Facebook.

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Ateneo Blue Repertory's "Company Call" Feb. 11, 2012

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Announcement from Ateneo Blue Repertory

Ateneo Blue Repertory
in celebration of its 20th year
presents

Company Call: Blue Rep at 20

A one-night-only concert featuring excerpts of past productions

Feb. 11, 2012 (Saturday) 8pm
Henry Lee Irwin Theater, Ateneo De Manila University, Quezon City.


Be entertained by songs from classic Broadway musicals such as "Once On This Island" and "Footloose," and to be electrified by high-energy numbers from more contemporary musicals like "High School Musical" and "All Shook Up."

Blue Rep original "Stages of Love" will also take a special place on the stage, ready as always to serenade lovers and would-be lovers on this pre-Valentine’s Day event.

Featuring noted Blue Rep alumni, also considered to be some of our best talents in Philippine theater today: Rem Zamora (Repertory Philippines), Gabe Mercado (TV personality and founder of improv-comedy group SPIT), and many more!

Directed by Toff De Venecia (Freakshow and Little Shop of Horrors)
Musical direction by Ejay Yatco (Edges)
Choreography and additional direction by Jim Ferrer


Contact 0926-716-4395.

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Philippine Arts Festival holds nationwide theater fest 2012

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Yay! My article on the upcoming National Collegiate Theater Fest was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer in its Jan. 30, 2012 issue.

The festival is part of National Arts Month and part of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts' Philippine Arts Festival 2012.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/iwroteit/message/331
Philippine Arts Festival holds nationwide theater fest
By Walter Ang

Theater workshop from last year's Tanghal festival.

This year’s Tanghal! National University and College Theater Festival will have events across the country, kicking off in the National Capital Region at University of Makati, Feb. 1-4.

Open to the public, the three main performances for NCR are Collective Arts of Students and Thespians’ (University of Makati) adaptation of Aurelio Tolentino’s “Kahapon, Ngayon at Bukas;” Tanghalang Ateneo’s (Ateneo de Manila University) staging of Ron Capinding’s “Para los Jovenes,” a collection of Rizal’s stories for children; and Navotas Polytechnic College’s staging of “Sampung Hampas ni Mesiyas,” a production tackling current social issues.

“The festival, now on its sixth year, offers performances from university theater groups from all over the country, showcasing the harvest of Philippine theater,” says Roberto “Bobet” Mendoza, festival director.

There will be fringe productions by Molave Theater (Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Manila); UP Rep (University of the Philippines, Quezon City); Our Lady of Perpetual Help College, Las Piñas; Paaralan ng Bayan (Special Program for the Arts, Manila); and SuhayFil (Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Manila).

Organized by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts’ National Committee on Dramatic Arts, the festival is the committee’s flagship project for National Arts Month—held every February, as per Presidential Proclamation No. 683 signed by President Corazon Aquino.

Part of the festival’s goals is aimed at strengthening a national network of college-based theater groups in the country and to facilitate collaborative work among theater groups and artists.

There will be a workshop conference, titled “D2 Na Me, Wer Na U?,” which will tackle university-based/student theater groups’ use of “theater language” for the stage.

“Theater language, meaning the signs, symbols and meanings that the groups have employed in their performances,” says Mendoza.

After the activities at University of Makati, the festival moves to Baguio City (Luzon), Feb. 9-11; General Santos City (Mindanao), Feb. 22-24; concluding in Dumaguete City (Visayas), Feb. 27-29.
Contact 0906-4911006, 0923-1318131, 0928-6256895 or tanghal62012@yahoo.com.

Also published online:
http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/32863/philippine-arts-festival-holds-nationwide-theater-fest

What do you think of this festival? Share your comments.

2011 BroadwayWorld Philippines Awards list of winners

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2011 BroadwayWorld Philippines Awards list of winners

Nominations were submitted on October 2011, and voting ran through midnight of December 31, 2011.


The BroadwayWorld Philippines Awards was created partly to celebrate BroadwayWorld Philippines's third anniversary (2011).

Best Leading Actress (Musical)
Nikki Gil - Sweet Charity - 9 Works Theatrical

Best Leading Actor (Musical)
Vince Tañada - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role/Ensemble Role (Musical)
Ciara Sotto - Sweet Charity - 9 Works Theatrical

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role/Ensemble Role (Musical)
OJ Mariano - Rent - 9 Works Theatrical


Best Leading Actress (Play)
Shamaine Buencamino - Fake - UP Playwrights' Theater

Best Leading Actor (Play)
Martin Delos Santos - Ang Post Office - PETA

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role/Ensemble Role (Play)
Cris Villonco - The Joy Luck Club - Repertory Philippines

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role/Ensemble Role (Play)
Jeremy Domingo - American Hwangap - Tanghalang Pilipino


Best Choreography
John San Antonio - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Costume Design
Emy Tañada - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Lighting Design
Shoko Matsumoto - Next To Normal - Atlantis Productions Inc.

Best Set Design
Jeffrey Ambrosio - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Sound Design
Art Grabentina - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Theatrical Venue
Resorts World Manila


Best Musical Direction
Pipo Cifra - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Direction of a Musical
Vince Tañada - Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Direction of a Play
Gary Labad - Ang Post Office - PETA


Best Musical
Cory ng Edsa - Philippine Stagers Foundation

Best Play
American Hwangap - Tanghalang Pilipino

Best Theater Company
9 Works Theatrical

What do you think of the winners? Share your comments.

Auditions for Spotlight Artists Centre's "Katy!" on Jan. 29, 2012

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Announcement from Spotlight Artist Centre

Auditions for "Katy!" on Jan. 29, 2012

Spotlight Artists Centre's
revival of
"Katy!"
a musical based on the life and times of
the “Queen of Filipino Jazz” and "The Queen of Bodabil"
Katy dela Cruz (1907-2004)

Music by Ryan Cayabyab
Book and lyrics by Jose Javier Reyes

Auditions for major roles only
Katy (25-40 years old)
Male lead (25-40 years old)
Young Katy’s father (45-55 years old)

Prepare a song from the musical or a jazz song.
Contact 899-8089 or 922-898-6644 for copies of songs from the musical and registration requirements. 

The musical premiered at the now-defunct Rizal Theater in 1989 and later transferred to the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Originally produced by Musical Theater Philippines (Musicat), headed by Celeste Legaspi and Girlie Rodis, “Katy!” starred Mitch Valdez, Legaspi, Bernardo Bernardo and Marco Sison, directed by Nestor Torre.

What do you think of this production? Share your comments.

Of high ticket prices and equity fees

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Cecile Zamora-Van Straten, who writes the blog Chuvaness.com, posted about high-ticket prices for foreign acts performing in the Philippines in her reaction to a news article:

Why Ticket Prices Are Sky High In The Philippines
Posted on January 21, 2012

Ever wonder why Filipinos pay so much money foreign acts in concerts in Manila, even though we sometimes have to stand in the rain in some reclaimed area/parking lot in a god-forsaken place?

OPM, that’s why. OPM apparently demands a very high fee from any foreign act performing in Manila. This includes the international touring group of Mamma Mia that is set to perform at the CCP this January 24-Februrary 12. 

Instead of feeling insecure about foreign artists performing here, OPM should be more nationalistic and consider:

1. All the hotel rooms these people are going to occupy = tourism
2. All the Filipinos who will enjoy watching a real performance of Mamma Mia, fresh from abroad, instead of having to fly to another country to see it
3. Whatever happened to “it’s more fun in the Philippines?” You are actually making it “more hassle in the Philippines.”
4. It’s not only the Filipinos would enjoy watching Mamma Mia at the CCP, it would also give tourists/foreigners/expats something else to look forward to besides our ho-hum malls.
5. Your exorbitant fees are absorbed by the producers who pass it on to the consumers. That explains why it’s more expensive to watch concerts and shows in the Philippines. Thank you very much.

Read on and let us know what you think in the comments section.

OPM to stop ‘Mamma Mia!’ if million-peso fee not paid
By: Pocholo Concepcion, Philippine Daily Inquirer
January 21, 2012 | 2:01 am

MANILA, Philippines—The Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM) is considering filing an injunction or temporary restraining order against the local promoter of the international touring production of the long-running West End and Broadway musical, “Mamma Mia!,” set to open Jan. 24 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

Elmar Beltran Ingles, OPM executive director, told the Inquirer on Friday that the local promoter Concertus Inc. had not paid the equity clearance, a requirement for all foreign artists performing in the Philippines, which is bound by a memorandum of agreement between the singers’ union and the Bureau of Immigration (BI).

“We’ve been talking with the promoter since November last year and were willing to give a 20-percent discount because the amount due is P1.8 million which is huge,” said Beltran.

The equity clearance fee—Php 5,000 per performer per show—Beltran said, goes to the OPM fund that pays for medical treatment and other emergency expenses of singer members.

But Concertus managing director Bambi Verzo said the BI had issued a special permit for the performers in the musical, which will have a four-week run.“We were being charged double [from the original amount of Php 900,000] because OPM said December to February is a peak season for local shows. We discussed the situation with the BI.”

Verzo told the Inquirer that her office paid the bureau Php 367,000 for the special permit.

She did not explain why she paid an amount much lower than the OPM’s asking price.

Beltran pointed out that the amount does not cover the equity clearance. “We suspect something happened inside the BI without the knowledge of the top officials,” he said. “Ogie Alcasid (OPM president) has been trying to contact the immigration commissioner (Ricardo David Jr.) but it seems his calls are being ignored. We may bring the matter to the attention of President Aquino.”

Verzo, whose group has produced other international productions including “Cats” and “The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber,” also at the CCP, said she didn’t see a problem. “We have the official permit, including the receipt of payment. That should settle the issue.”

Beltran said OPM will wait until Monday for Concertus to meet with them.


A few days later, Elmar Beltran, executive director of Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM), posted this in his Facebook account:


Setting the facts straight on the OPM Equity Issue
by Elmar Beltran Ingles 
on Monday, January 23, 2012 at 1:17am

Why ticket prices are high in the Philippines: The Facts Behind the Equity Issue

Whatever shows you’re watching, Ms. Chuvaness, you better check your math and review your economics and the Philippine Constitution.

Last time we checked, local plays charge only between a minimum of 300 to a maximum of 1,000 pesos per ticket – or roughly 7 to 23 in dollar equivalent. Concert tickets for local acts sell for a maximum of 6,000 pesos or a little over 137 dollars. That’s for very few good seats. But you obviously prefer foreign acts with tickets as high as 12,500 pesos for very good seats.

And you blame OPM and the Equity agreement it inked with the Bureau of Immigration for “making it more hassle in the Philippines.” And you call local artists “insecure.”

Last time we checked, Article II, Sections 17, 19, and 20 of the Philippine Constitution still prioritize arts and culture (among others), guarantee the development of a self-reliant and independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos, recognize the indispensable role of the private sector, encourages private enterprise, and provide incentives to needed investments. The same Constitution’s Article 14, Sections 14 to 18 enshrine the policies and support system guaranteed by the state in promoting and developing local arts and culture.

Let’s try some education here.

The Performers’ Equity Rights program has been in force since 1987 upon the initiative of then Immigration Commissioner Miriam Defensor Santiago who dialogued with OPM and the Asosasyon ng Musikong Pilipino (AMP) to engage these artists’ NGOs in policing the entry of foreign performers who do professional work in the Philippines. This was seen as a government-private cooperation which also sought to provide assistance to local performers and producers whose livelihood and practice of profession are displaced by the influx of foreign productions. The tripartite Memorandum of Agreement has since been upheld and honored by succeeding Immigration Commissioners. As of this writing, efforts are being done to review the MOA in the hope that other affected sectors – theater, fashion and advertising, magic and circus, and other live entertainers and performers – are covered and benefited by the Equity scheme which is a big help in providing medical, hospitalization, emergency assistance and burial benefits now available to singers and musicians.

The Philippines is not the only country that levies Equity dues to foreign performers. We only have to look back and recall how Ms. Lea Salonga was subjected to very strict equity rules by both West End and Broadway Equity unions. France and Australia also levy a certain “displacement fee” that supports local artists affected by visiting ones.

OPM is NOT against foreign artists performing in the Philippines. We have long recognized that the world is increasingly becoming borderless and highly-globalized which augurs well for cultural exchanges between people of all nations. BUT WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO PROTECT OUR OWN ARTISTS AND PRODUCERS by levelling the playing field through policy reviews and actual government support.

OPM upholds and respects the freedom of choice made by our audiences when they patronize concerts and other forms of entertainment or cultural expressions. But critics of local concerts ought to realize that the much-sought regulatory measures are not only about levelling the playing fields for ticket sales between concerts featuring so-called “world-class” artists and those of local talents. It is more about supporting, promoting and asserting the bearers and promoters of our own cultural identity, local creative economy and national patrimony.

Foreign acts have long dominated the local concert circuit. Admittedly, they offer more attractive options for marketing and advertising. When foreign acts come to town, they normally take the route of Asian tours that have been conceptualized and produced abroad ready for local viewers to watch. They do not incur the same prohibitive costs of creative development, pre-production work, rehearsals, promotions and local taxation that local concerts are regularly exposed to. Local acts also have a more difficult time securing amusement tax exemptions or discounts from local government units than their foreign counterparts.

True, visiting artists and foreign acts help promote the country and its tourism industry and contribute to the economy. But for how long? It is the collective effort of local artists and producers that sustain the local entertainment, music, theater and performance industries long after foreign acts have left with their profits.

Foreign artists do not pay regular local income taxes while Filipino artists do. In fact, when a big foreign act is mounted locally, local concert, theater and related performing arts productions suffer from almost zero local advertising support for the rest of the year as advertisers have committed most of their resources to foreign acts. It is the local producers who are left holding empty bags. All of these contribute to a near-death spell for a local performing arts industry that has long invested in the development and long-term sustainability of the local creative economy.

And Ms. Chuvaness bullies OPM to be “more nationalistic” by discarding Equity dues levied against foreign productions? Does she even know what she’s talking about? OPM has exempted Bruno Mars and others from paying Equity because they are half-Filipinos – a rule that we have stipulated to encourage foreign artists of Filipino parentage to share their talents with local audiences. We exempt foreign classical productions (ballets, choirs, orchestras, and solo acts) from Equity dues because we believe they provide opportunities for global artistic exposure and education among our audiences. We provide professional training to new talents and social benefits to needy ones from the Equity collections. And still, some people call us “extortionists”. Does Ms. Chuvaness even know that each of the more than 15 top-rated foreign acts which competed against a few local artists for sponsorship ticket sales in February 2011 paid a measly 10,000 pesos Equity dues for each show? Does she know how much money was lost by local producers who got clobbered in sponsorship and ticket sales? We don’t think so.

If most other foreign-dominated industries or economic ventures operating locally get subjected to local regulatory measures for protective sustainability, why can’t it be done to music and the rest of the arts which are said to be “the soul of the nation”? The government must act now to recognize the value of Filipino artistry by ensuring greater support for the development and promotion of the dignity of artistic labor and industry.

We reiterate that we are not against the presence of foreigners in our local music industry and in the local concert, theater and entertainment circuits. But we reserve the right to protect our own livelihood – just like any other Filipino professionals who care for equitable and fair treatment, dignity of local labor, sense of patriotism, and the recognition of the Filipino creative genius.

And why is OPM and AMP collecting Equity dues for musical theater and, hopefully,  other live foreign production in the performing arts? Because, presently, OPM and AMP are the only ones that have entered into an agreement with the Bureau of Immigration. We long for the day when other guilds and artists’ organizations – such as the Philippine Theater Actors Guild, the Professional Models Association of the Philippines, the circus and magicians groups, and the local performing arts producers association (PHILSTAGE) – are made parties to the agreement. Because we believe that our collective initiatives are the reasons why we have a vibrant local creative industry that, unfortunately, is better appreciated and supported by global audiences and producers than our very own government, audiences and critics.


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