First staged in 1991 in the University of the Philippines, Diliman Campus, this production has evolved in so many ways. From its cast to its present day collaborators, MANHID, is now a Ballet Philippines production; perfectly capping off its 45th Theater Season.
Wait no further as I present to you the "brains" behind the 2015 Ballet Philippines staging of this wonderful production.
The Collaborators
Paul Alexander Morales
Director, Choreographer
Paul Alexander Morales unites his varied
interests and experience in the arts in the service of dance. Morales graduated
from the University of the Philippines where he majored in theater directing,
mentored by Prof. Tony Mabesa. In UP, Morales was first able to study ballet
under Tita Radaic and Steve Villaruz of Dance Theater Philippines. He further
pursued dance with Ballet Philippines as a scholar and member of the pioneer
batch of Ballet Philippines II under Agnes Locsin, concurrently while pursuing
his college degree. After graduation, with the support of BP’s former director
Denisa Reyes, the CCP and the British Council, Morales became a scholar at the
Laban Center in London.
As director and choreographer, he has created
works for Dulaang Talyer, Airdance, Ballet Philippines, the Philippine
Educational Theater Association (PETA), E-Dance Theater, Myra Beltran Dance
Forum, Philippine Ballet Theatre, Repertory Philippines, Tanghalang Pilipino as
well for mainstream and independent films. As an independent filmmaker, he won
Best Screenplay Adaptation at the 6th Golden Screen Awards for his first
feature film, ‘Concerto.’ The film was also a Cinemalaya finalist, was graded
‘A’ by the Cinema Evaluation Board, and received the Bamboo Camera Award from
Kidlat Tahimik. In 2010 Paul’s short video was one of the winners of the online
video contest of the acclaimed Martha Graham Dance Company.
Artistic Director of Ballet Philippines since
2009, Paul has choreographed ‘Tales of the Manuvu’ and the contemporary ballet,
‘Crisostomo Ibarra’ which was awarded Outstanding Dance Production at the 2010
Gawad Buhay! Awards. His works typically involve multi-media collaborations
that combine his many interests.
Leading BP in its Main Theater season was his
childhood dream, a dream he feels that was made a reality by the skills and
talents he had honed in pursuit of his artistic dreams, talents strengthened by
the mentoring, sharing, exploration and celebration of his fellow artists.
KANAKAN-BALINTAGOS
Writer, Composer
Writer, Composer
Kanakan-Balintagos,
the filmmaker formerly known as Auraeus Solito, is an internationally acclaimed
and award-winning Palawán-Filipino filmmaker. His feature films have been shown
in major film festivals around the world including Cannes, Sundance, Toronto,
Montreal and Berlin. His first film Ang
Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros (The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros) earned
15 international awards. He is also the first Filipino to make it to the
premiere independent film festival in the world, the SUNDANCE Film Festival.
His other films include Tuli, Busong and Baybayin – all of which have won awards both locally and
internationally.
A filmmaker of all
genres, he has also worked on documentaries, short films and a music video “Ang
Huling El Bimbo” by the Eraserheads which won the Asian Viewer’s Choice Award
at the MTV Video Music Awards.
He is also a playwright,
actor and director of Theater when he was a student at the University of the
Philippines, was founder of the UP Tropa Experimental Theater Company and was
touted the “enfente terrible of Philippine Theater” during his time in the
University.
He comes from a lineage
of Shaman-Kings from the indigenous Palawán of South Palawan. He is now using
his tribal name Kanakan-Balintagos which was dreamt by his shaman-uncle which
means “Hunter of Truth”.
VINCENT DE JESUS
Composer
Composer
Vincent
de Jesus is one of the country’s most versatile composers. He is a Filipino
composer, librettist,[1] musical scorer, and musical director for theater,
television, and film. He is also a writer, lyricist, actor, singer, and
educator. He attended the University of the Philippines Diliman College of
Music, and majored in piano and voice. He is a member of the Philippine
Educational Theater Association since 1985.
He
has been awarded three Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino Gawad Urian Awards, two
Film Academy of the Philippines Luna Award, three Philippine Movie Press Club
Star Awards, two Entertainment Press Golden Screen Awards, and one Gawad
Tanglaw for Best Achievement in Film Music.
He
is a recipient of the Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Award for Literature for a
one-act play. He won two Philstage Gawad Buhay Awards for Outstanding Original
Libretto (for “Skin Deep” in 2008 and “Si Juan Tamad, ang Diyablo at ang LImang
Milyong Boto” in 2009), one for Outstanding Musical Direction (for “Batang
Rizal” in 2008), one for Outstanding Original Composition (for “Si Juan Tamad,
ang Diyablo at ang LImang Milyong Boto”), and two for Outstanding Musical (for
“Skin Deep” and “Si Juan Tamad, ang Diyablo at ang LImang Milyong Boto”).
His
works have been used for theatre, television and films. In a time when foreign
acts dominate the music scene, de Jesus is just one of the Filipinos who
continuously keeps OPM alive.
THE ERASERHEADS
Composer
Composer
The
Eraserheads is one the biggest, most successful and most influential bands in
the history of OPM. The band is composed of Ely Buendia on vocals, Marcus Adoro
on guitars, Buddy Zapala on bass and Raimund Marasigan on drums. Despite the
band’s separation in 2002, their music continuously lives on. In fact, a
tribute album called Ultraelectromagneticjam!:
The Music of the Eraserheads has been released in
honour of the band. And thanks to their reunion concerts, fans from all over
the world get to witness the band’s eminence.
Alden Lugnasin
Choreographer
Alden
has bought to life a wide range of characters showcasing his versatility as a
dancer since he joined Ballet Philippines. In 1998, he was guest
choreographer-in-residence for the International Dance Festival at Connecticut
College, USA. He progressed and became
very prolific in developing moving and innovative works.
Exposed
to world class ballet masters and choreographers, he is strongly motivated and
has created some of the most stirring dance works such as Impasse, Life is a
Rope, FireWaterWoman, and Buhay. The
latter was performed in Cambodia during the ASEAN Culture Week. In December 2000, his piece Aku, was awarded
the silver medal in solo category at the Concours International de Danse de
France.
Alden
was the Philippine representative to participate in the Asia Pacific
Performance Exchange Artist Program (APPEX) organized and administered by the
University of California, Los Angeles-Center for the Intercultural Performance
which was held in Bali, Indonesia last June to August 2004. In September 2012,
Alden became the first overseas guest choreographer of Observe Asian by the
National University of Singapore Dance Ensemble.
He
is also currently the Artistic Director of BP2, Ballet Philippines’ junior
performing company.
Francis de Veyra
Musical Director
Not only is Francis de Veyra a multi-awarded composer,
arranger, and musical director, but he is also the bass guitarist of the band
Radioactive Sago Project. He finished his Bachelor’s Degree in Music
Composition at the University of the Philippines College of Music, and is
currently teaching Music Production and Multimedia Music at the De La Salle
College of Saint Benilde School of Design & Arts and St. Scholastica’s
College, respectively. He has also served as visiting faculty/consultant at the
Philippine High School for the Arts (PHSA) in Los Baños, Laguna.
Radioactive Sago Project
Live Band
The nine-piece ensemble from the suburbs of Quezon City
plays a critically acclaimed mélange of spoken word poetry, bebop, free-jazz,
punk, soul, funk, afro-Latin, rock, and a mad sundry of musical styles
sprinkled with massive doses of humor and irony.
The Radioactive Sago Project’s perennially surprising
stylistic excursions have earned them a cult following, from critics to art
fans, even to discerning rock audiences. The band is fronted by four-time
Palanca Award-winning writer Lourd de Veyra, along with alumni from the UP
College of Music, two-time Gawad Urian awardee for Best Music, Francis de Veyra
on bass, Jay Gapasin on durms, Junji Lerma on guitars, Pards Tupas on trombone,
Arwin Nava on percussions, and Wowie Ansano on trumpet. Eventually, the band
added Roxy Modesto (tenor and baritone saxophone) and B-boy Garcia (turntables)
to beef-up the lineup.
Zard Eguia
Set Designer
Zard
Eguia received his degree in Production Design at De La Salle-College of Saint
Benilde.While finishing his degree he has worked with well known artists in the
industry and has acquired professional credits on different fields. He is
currently working as a freelance Production Designer for print, events and film
and is the interim Scenographer of Theater Down South. He has recently been
nominated for “BEST OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN” in the GAWAD BUHAY! 2012 PHILSTAGE
AWARDS FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS for Ballet Philippines’ Neo Filipino: Anting.
VICTOR URSABIA
Costume Designer
Victor Ursabia is a choreographer, coach and ballet
master. Victor studied and trained dance pedagogy under Noordin Jumalon,
William Morgan, Agnes Locsin, Denisa Reyes, Edna Vida and Norman Walker among
others. In 1988, he went to Atlanta Ballet School on a scholarship grant from
Maniya Barredo and later, studied at the Boston Ballet School. He also had a scholarship
to dance at the Centre de Danse du Marais in Paris, France. Victor is also a
dance photographer and production designer. A Fine Arts graduate from the PWU
Institute of Fine Arts, his designs have been seen in Ballet Philippines’
productions such as La Revolucion Filipina, Medea, Neo Filipino, and CCPDS
productions. As a competition mentor, he has coached his students to victory in
both local and international competitions. He coached BP’s successful
delegations to the NAMCYA, as well as the USA International Ballet Competition,
Varna International Ballet Competition, and Helsinki International Ballet
Competition.
Roman Cruz
Lighting Designer
Roman
is currently the Theater and Venue Facilities Management Coordinator of Cultural
Arts Office in De La Salle University. He is also a senior member of Philippine
Educational Theater Association or PETA. One of the PETA productions in which
he was the lighting designer and technical director was PETA Arts Zone’s “Rated
PG.” Roman has also been a technical
director and lights designer for various theater productions. In 2006, he was
technical director and lights designer of Green Papaya Art Project’s Anatomy of
Humiliation and Desire and “Extended Periods of Waiting,” a dance showcase
which was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2007. In 2010, Roman worked with Green Papaya once
again with the same job title for their production “No Bleeding Hearts Club.”
Roman has also worked with two of the finest Philippine artists, Grace Nono and
Bob Aves for their concert “Songs For The Beloved” in 2010 held in Singapore as
technical director and lights designer.
Walang komento:
Mag-post ng isang Komento