You're invited!

Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio's Papet Pasyon

FREE ADMISSION 

April 1, 2012 - PALM SUNDAY

3pm and 5:30pm

Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio Teatro Papet-Museo

64 Mapagkawanggawa St. 

Teacer's Village East, Diliman, QC

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PRESS RELEASE

Pasyon for kids
In 1984, Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio wrote a puppet play that sought to bring back the Pasyon to the younger generation. The puppet play was premiered in 1985 at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The Pasyon is a Filipino cultural tradition full of music and poetry performed during Holy Week for the love of the story of the Passion of Christ. It stands as a reminder for townsfolk to bear witness to the life of Christ, making the Lenten Season more meaningful.

This year, let the events of the Holy Week come to life in puppetry! Watch Papet Pasyon, the annual production of Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas, the country’s homegrown puppetry troupe and children’s theater. Papet Pasyon is now on its 27th year.

Admission is free on April 1, 2012, Palm Sunday, 3pm and 5:30pm, at Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio Teatro Papet Museo, 64 Mapagkawanggawa St. Teacher’s Village East, Diliman, Quezon City. For details email mulatpuppets77@yahoo.com or call/text 0918.903.2040. Bring your palms, and see you there!

Papet Pasyon!

One more peaceful Sunday before Papet Pasyon, Teatrong Mulat's annual Holy Week show! This year is special because it marks the puppet play's 25th year. (Papet Pasyon was first shown in 1985.) So, if you want to see something different (cultural! historical!), how about forgetting the mall for one day and dropping by our teatro in Teacher's Village? Bring the whole family! (And, if you've just gone to mass, bring your palaspas!)

Watch AMELIA LAPEÑA-BONIFACIO' s

PAPET PASYON

(the Philippines' 1st and only children's senakulo in puppetry)

FOR FREE!!!

March 28, 2010/Palm Sunday

3:00 & 5:30 pm

Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio Teatro Papet Museo

64 Mapagkawanggawa St., Teachers Village, Quezon City

for details call 921.9773, 929.0895, 0918.903.2040

Directions from Quezon Memorial Circle: Take Commonwealth Ave., RIGHT on Masaya St. (before Mercury Philcoa; corner w/ tricycles, Ministop and Bank of Commerce) LEFT on Maginhawa St. go straight until you see Holy Family School. Theater on the left side in front of Talleres de Nazaret.

From Katipunan: Take CP Garcia, go straight when you see National Stud Farm turn LEFT. RIGHT on Magiting St. when you see Ministop turn RIGHT (Maginhawa St.). Next street to your LEFT is Mapagkawanggawa. Theater on the left side in front of Talleres de Nazaret.

Papet ASEAN 2010 in pictures

The festival is over! It was an eye-opening experience, not only because I met people from different ASEAN countries (and got to see awesome shows!), but also because somehow, there are times when you feel like a foreigner in your own country. Take, for instance, coping with little changes in the plans! One has to learn to be flexible when the instructions given and the demands of the moment disagree. One has to be ready to do things, and not just wait for them to be done. And one has to learn to be calm in case the printer does not cooperate. hehe!

Can't write much now because I only have two weeks for all my Baby Mag assignments! So here are a few pictures I took with my low-batt camera. Enjoy!

At the festival opening; waiting for the show to start!

Vishnu shadow puppet for Teatrong Mulat's Sita and Rama.

Checking the OHP's distance for Ravana's song.

The delegates have their meeting at the Claro M. Recto Hall in Faculty Center.

Wayang sandosa from Indonesia!

Eating out with some delegates at Max's Restaurant after a long day!

The delegates take a tour of Amelia Lapena Bonifacio Teatro Papet Museo.

Jamming--the ASEAN way!

No small roles

We started the Papet Pasyon rehearsals again! Three new puppeteers are joining this year so I don't know if I'll still be bread or wine (or both). Anyhoo, here's a little something I thought about in last Sunday's rehearsals, and maybe it would be good to share.

It was my Theater 131 teacher Sir Behn (Behn Cervantes) who said those words in the title of this post. In fact, it's even longer than that. He said, "There are no small roles." I don't remember if he said it once or repeatedly throughout the semester, but it stuck with me. I remember it every time I do my work, or whenever I pick up a puppet, or even when I do some house chores, it reverberates in my head.

In my first Papet Pasyon, I remember having been assigned to do all those little stuff: the bread and wine, the bag of silver, the cross of Christ. And I remember looking at the other puppeteers with green eyes and thinking, "I wish I had an apostle or at least a puppet with rods on its hands." But as a newcomer, I only got to hold a dancer in the first number and all those little objects.

But as I've participated in more and more Pasyon shows and have handled more puppets, I've come to understand how difficult and important those little roles are. For one, you can hardly see in the dark and are more liable to be stepped on when you're crouching and praying for your dear life while everyone is standing around you carrying heavy wooden apostles. For another, just one little bad pass (like, say, in handling the bag of coins between Dathan and Judas) is a magnified mistake as opposed to a big blocking mishap among the larger puppets (with a person-puppet, you can always make it pretend it knows what it's doing; a bag of coins floating in the air, on the other hand, will be a magical phenomenon that fits nicely only in Professor Flitwick's first year class).

Finally, what's the Last Supper without the bread and wine?

It doesn't stop in Theater class or puppeteering. There are no small roles. In the work you do, have you ever considered any of your tasks a menial one? Imagine taking it out: does the office work still hold together? In Baby Mag, I've "arrrghed" over the task of compiling all the baby pictures in Baby Gallery and making sure the names are spelled right--but (surprise!) that's the first page mommies turn to when they buy the magazine! I know because there is always a letter saying thanks for publishing a baby photo. Small task, but important.

There is always that temptation to just do the little things haphazardly--after all, "no one might notice" or "it's just a little thing". But the truth is, in everything one does, one leaves a bit of himself...something like a stamp of ownership, or a proof of manufacture. Slipshod work, then, is just proof of a slipshod heart. (I say "heart" because that's where the "I" is--the real one, without the mask.)

In this way, it isn't only a matter of seeing the little things as important--anyone can do that. It's also a matter of wanting to treat the small things as big things, to put one's all in every task that lay ahead. I am shortchanging you by quoting Sir Behn incompletely. What he said in whole, which he directed as a challenge, especially to that lone shy and silly girl in his class was: "There are no small roles...just small actors."

So get to it!

Papet ASEAN!

It's a busy time for puppeteers now that February is coming up. On February 24-26, puppeteers from different ASEAN countries (such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines) come together at the Abelardo Hall Auditorium (College of Music, UP Diliman) to showcase their different puppetry forms and techniques to help create appreciation and awareness among the younger generations.

At a time when television and the Internet rank high as main forms of entertainment for kids, the puppets of Papet ASEAN 2010 provide a different (and if I may stay so, creativity-enhancing) take on what entertains kids--and at the same time educates them. Join the Seminar on Puppetry-in-Education at the Claro M. Recto Hall, Bulwagang Rizal (Faculty Center), UP Diliman, at 4pm on Feb 25.

Here's the news snippet on the puppet fest:

“PAPET ASEAN 2010: Celebrating ASEAN Puppet Traditions” is a 3-day celebration of artistry, solidarity, and life as distinguished puppet artists and experts/scholars meet, perform and discuss the rich tradition of puppetry in the ASEAN.

Puppets come alive on Feb. 24 (Festival Opening) and Feb. 25-26 (10 am & 2:30 pm shows @ the Abelardo Hall Auditorium). The festival will feature Mascots and Puppets Specialists (Singapore), Pak Yusoff Mamat (Malaysia), 2 Indonesian dalangs, Anino Shadowplay Collective (Philippines), Ony Carcamo (Philippines), Roppets Edutainment (Philippines), and Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas (Philippines). A seminar on puppetry-in-education is scheduled on Feb. 25.

PAPET ASEAN 2010 coincides with the celebration of the National Arts Month, the U.P. Diliman Month and the U.P. Department of Speech Communication and Theater Arts 50^th Anniversary.

Festival Organizer Samahan ng mga Papetir ng Pilipinas acknowledges the invaluable support of the ASEAN Foundation, ASEAN Puppetry Association, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, UNESCO, the Quezon City Government, PAGCOR, Theater Lighting Technology, Royal Embassy of Cambodia, Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia, Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the University of the Philippines (Office of the President, Office of the Chancellor, Office for Initiatives in Culture and Arts, College of Arts & Letters, and the College of Music Department of Musicology).

Mark your calendar for Papet ASEAN 2010—February 24-26, 2010--and get ready for this magical puppetry event!

For inquiries, call/text 0918.9032040, 439.1471 or email papetir@gmail.com.

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Schedule of shows!

Feb 25/Thurs

10am and 2:30pm

Wayang golek dalang (Indonesia), Pak Yusoff Mamat (wayang kulit, Malaysia), Anino Shadowplay Collective (shadow puppetry, Philippines)

Feb 26/Fri

10am and 2:30pm

Wayang kulit dalang (Indonesia), Roppets Edutainment (table puppetry and muppets, Philippines), Mascots and Puppets Specialists (marionettes, Singapore)

Feb 26
Festival closing (after 2:30pm show)

Tickets (P200) are available at the Department of Speech Communication & Theater Arts, FC3069, Bulwagang Rizal, College of Arts & Letters, and Ticket Net)

I second the motion!

Ang Sarsuwela ay isang dulang may kantahan at sayawan, na mayroong isa hanggang limang kabanata, at nagpapakita ng mga sitwasyon ng Pilipino na may kinalaman sa mga kwento ng pag-ibig at kontemporaryong isyu. Ito rin ay tinatawag na zarzuela, sarsuela, dulang inawitan, dulang hinonihan, drama-lirico at operetta. (WikiFilipino)

Found this article (below) by Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio in Inquirer's Lifestyle pages yesterday. I think Lola Amel's proposal that they make the Metropolitan Theater a Zarzuela Theater and Museum is a very good idea! This way, we can bring back the theater form for today's audiences. After all, wasn't the zarzuela festival in UP last February successful?

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Why not a Met Zarzuela Theater and Museum?
By Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio

MANILA, Philippines – As a follow-up to your news item on the rehabilitation of the Metropolitan Theater, I suggest that the Met be renamed the Metropolitan Zarzuela Theater and Museum. This would make the Met more unique and meaningful because it would honor a theater genre which was used by our forefathers in their struggle for independence—the only theater in the long history of dramatic art that used theater so cleverly and strategically in the fight for freedom of Asia’s first republic.

The first floor of the theater could be lined with glass cases that would exhibit manuscripts and musical sheets, books, letters, costumes, props, sets, etc. I am sure families keeping these items across the land would be only too happy to donate them (permanently or periodically) for the exhibit.

...

I hope my suggestion will be taken seriously so that our school children could be properly educated about a very important phase of our theater history and about theatrical events unique only to the Philippines. And as the Japanese and tourists go to the Noh Theatres and Kabuki theaters of Japan, Filipinos and tourists would go to the Metropolitan Zarzuela Theater and Museum in order to watch zarzuela and see the exhibits of zarzuela items and of, I hope, a surviving zarzuela telon or set.

For the money and labor still to be spent, we may as well work for a meaningful Metropolitan Theater—set apart from all existing theaters in the country and the whole world!

Read the whole article here.

Pasyon on TV!

(This is a photo of last year's Pasyon. I don't have any of this year's! :-o)

I don't know what they'll be showing on The Probe Team tonight (Holy WED, 11:30pm @ ABS-CBN Channel 2), but the TV people sure took a lot of footage. Ma'am Ami Ramolete and Amelia Lapena Bonifacio (Lola Amel) gave interviews, so that should be good to watch.

Tune in tonight!

Palm Sunday is Papet Pasyon!

Lola Amel with Magdalena, Jesus and Batang Lalaki. Photo from Teatrong Mulat.

Once a year, we bring the puppets called Jesus, Maria, Juan, Magdalena, Pedro, Tomas, Felipe, and Judas out of their sleeping bags (i.e. boxes) for the annual free show, Papet Pasyon. Last Sunday was our first rehearsal, so that explains why "Jerusalem, Jerusalem" keeps playing in my head. Happens every time.

Of course, I'm inviting everyone to come see our Holy Week show! It's free, so all you'll really worry about is transportation! :-D Here's the invite I sent by email.

Watch AMELIA LAPEÑA-BONIFACIO' s

PAPET PASYON

(the Philippines' 1st and only children's senakulo in puppetry)

FOR FREE!!!

April 5, 2009/Palm Sunday

3:00 & 5:30 pm

Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio Teatro Papet Museo

64 Mapagkawanggawa St., Teachers Village, Quezon City

for details call 921.9773, 929.0895, 0918.903.2040

Directions from Quezon Memorial Circle: Take Commonwealth Ave., RIGHT on Masaya St. (before Mercury Philcoa; corner w/ tricycles, Ministop and Bank of Commerce) LEFT on Maginhawa St. go straight until you see Holy Family School. Theater on the left side in front of Talleres de Nazaret.

From Katipunan: Take CP Garcia, go straight when you see National Stud Farm turn LEFT. RIGHT on Magiting St. when you see Ministop turn RIGHT (Maginhawa St.). Next street to your LEFT is Mapagkawanggawa. Theater on the left side in front of Talleres de Nazaret.

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In 1977, Prof. Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio was invited by the Dept of Speech and Drama to present one of her plays. Originally a playwright for adult audiences, Prof. Bonifacio decided to present Abadeja: Ang Ating Sinderella, a puppet play based on a Visayan folktale. It was performed in cooperation with DUP and UP Rep Company. Moved by the enthusiasm and spurred by her own long-standing dream of forming a children's theater group, Prof Bonifacio founded TEATRONG MULAT NG PILIPINAS (1977). "Mulat" means to open and to awaken; hence, a theater to awaken children to the beauty and richness not only of their own culture, but of still unfamiliar Asian cultures. Papet Pasyon was first staged in 1985. Visit www.mulat.org for more info.

See you there, folks!

On modesty when the required attire is "ahem"

Taking off from Cady Driver's post in Modestly Yours, I realize there's a lot about stage and theater that, shall we say, attacks modesty with the reason "but it's art" on its side.

There was a conversation repeated to me by one of my high school teachers (one popular comedian in showbiz used to be her student). After graduating, the comedian went into showbiz and had to dress up the way mass media wanted her to (not exactly modest). My teacher asked her, "Why do you allow that?" and she was said to reply, "Because the director said so."

There's also a play I saw last year in UP, and in one scene women were dressed in nothing but a sheet draped over the shoulders and tied with a flimsy belt. Seeing that, I wondered then what these women thought of the costumes and the movements they had to do. Were they like the comedian who thought it's okay because the director said so? Did they think "Don't compromise art"? I wondered whether they felt uncomfortable...I know I did, all the while hoping that they had skin toned leotards underneath like in Eula Valdes in Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah (tough luck).

This is a pretty lengthy introduction! It's certainly easy to fall into the trap of That's Just How It Is when it comes to art and showbiz--and come to think of it, the same excuse arises in fitness centers (here I'm thinking about yoga, where an outfit made out of one square yard of cloth seems excessive).

I started taking yoga classes late last year, and my first concern had been what if they made me wear those itty bitty things? (Luckily, my sister had enrolled a week earlier, and this was how I learned that more cloth could be worn.)

I'm not gonna overlook the fact that for Filipinos everything is a fashion show, which explains pretty much how one could spot a beginner in a snap (s/he's the one who is dressed to impress). So besides wanting to cover up more, I also wanted to look like a seasoned yogi (tough luck on this one also--you can't hide inexperience).

In yoga couture, I learned, what's more important is what your clothes allow you to do and not what they make you look like. I ended up settling for a t-shirt and leggings combo because it satisfied four things: I could move in it, my teacher can see if I'm doing the poses correctly, it doesn't obstruct breathing in the bending postures (see above) and I don't feel over exposed (not like in pic above).

Perhaps when it comes to costumes, there are certain needs that have to be satisfied. So for ballet that should be the stretchy and fit leotards that allow the dancer to move and not get snagged. (Recalling the post in Modestly Yours, the fishnet stockings for the teen dancers weren't necessary!) And in theater, thick makeup, no matter how unpleasant, is a need so that you don't lose your face in the spotlights (even actors, not just the actresses, wear makeup).

But anything that takes away a degree of modesty without answering to the needs of the activity is simply crossing the line. Because real creativity finds a way to make a better costume when the first idea for the costume is simply unwearable. Art for art's sake is a popular argument--but art shouldn't compromise human dignity (big word!). Whether you're a dancer, a stage actor or a yogi, you must know that it's the costume (and actions you allow yourself to do) that spells out whether you're a serious participant of an artful discipline or simply a knut-and-bolt in a spectacle made for gawkers to enjoy.

Be mine Valentine

It's Valentine's Day! Let me share a scene from Sita and Rama: Papet Ramayana, here being performed by Roel (7) and Aina Ramolete (10), future master puppeteers. In this scene, Rama and Sita sing a beautiful duet about love and service--which really do go together however people try to separate them.

Let me share the song lyrics (written by accomplished playwright and professor emeritus Amelia Lapena Bonifacio):

Awit ni Prinsipe Rama at Prinsesa Sita
P. Rama: Magmula sa araw na ito,
sumpa kong matimtiman
Lahat ka sa aking buhay,
hindi kita pababayaan;

P. Sita: Magmula sa araw na ito,
sumpa kong matimtiman
Ikaw lang ang mamahalin,
Hindi kita pababayaan;

Sabay: Maging anuman ang iyong pasiya,
ako ang mag-aalalay
Kasama mo ako sa hapis o saya,
sa hirap o kasaganaan.
Maging anuman ang iyong pasiya,
Ako ay nakaalalay;

Magmula sa araw na ito,
hanggang tayo'y sumakabilangbuhay!
Magmula sa araw na ito,
hanggang tayo'y sumakabilangbuhay!

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For English speakers, forgive me, I can't make a better translation (that is an art in itself, I suppose). But here's what I did just for you:

The song of Prince Rama and Princess Sita
P. Rama: From this day hence,
I sincerely vow
You are all to me,
I will take care of you.

P. Sita: From this day hence,
I sincerely vow
Only you will I love,
I will take care of you.

Both: Whatever you decide
I am you aide
With you in sorrow and joy,
in hardship and abundance.
Whatever you decide
I attend;

From this day
until we pass from this world!
From this day
until we pass from this world!


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Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Spread the love ;-)

Busy with puppets!

Yep, you read it right: from now until April I'll be hanging out with puppets every Sunday because Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas has 2 big upcoming shows early this year! What an exciting way to start the year. :-D

That's Rama and Sita in the picture. The play Sita and Rama: Papet Ramayana will show in CCP's Huseng Batute (black box) theater, for CCP's 40th year. Tickets cost 300 for adults and 150 for students. Here's the schedule:

February 20, FRI, 10am and 3pm
February 21, SAT, 3pm and 7pm

(Tickets will be with Mulat so you can email mulatpuppets77@yahoo.com. Or ask me, hehe!)

The other show is of course the annual Papet Pasyon, which is usually scheduled on Palm Sunday is for free. For now, it's Sita and Rama we're busy with, so I'll just put up another heads up for the Holy Week show in March....

Oktoberfest (though not about beer)

October is the birthday month of Baby Magazine! That explains why every October, our magazine's theme is festive:


(That's SM Star Baby Winner Madielyn Jhen Tan Daughtry on the cover, taken by The Picture Company.)

The October issue is one meaty read, especially for parents who are planning for their child's birthday! We had so much fun planning, preparing, shooting and writing this issue--and one of the most memorable experiences was when we went to the house of Robert and Gia Leon to shoot the pretend-mini-preparations for their middle child Mikee's birthday. We made birthday banners, banderitas, party food trays--colorful and festive party stuff that won't put a hole on the pocket. Needless to say, all five kids--Raffie, Regina, Mikee, Mari and Marti--had a swell time with the crafts and balloons.

There's also a feature about Samahan ng mga Papetir ng Pilipinas, which I covered. Children's theater is being overlooked now that there are so many other high-tech gadgets to entertain today's kids. Puppetry is a different kind of entertainment--and it inspires creativity in so many different ways! SPP had a puppetry festival last August, and that's the first time all the Filipino puppeteers got together for one event. Let's hope for more events like this!

Of course there's the usual dose of helpful parenting stuff! Baby magazine is published by Marathon Publishing Co. and is sold at all SM Department stores (baby section), National Bookstores, Babyland (Robinsons Galleria, Shaw Blvd. near Cherry Foodarama, Virra Mall, Baby & Co. (The Podium and Power Plant Mall), Bufini, Procreation Shangri-la mall, Big & Small Co. Shangri-la Mall.

The First Philippine Puppetry Festival

Witness the 1st Philippine Puppetry Festival from August 13 to 15 in celebration of the Buwan ng Wika. The festival features the pioneers in Philippine puppetry namely -- Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas, Black Theater of Manila, Tali Galaw, Roppets Edutainment, ANINO Shadowplay Collective and Ony Carcamo. Learn about the different types of puppets (rod, string, hand, and
shadow puppets, black theater, and ventriloquism) when you watch their 10 am or 1:30 pm shows at the Tanghalang Huseng Batute, Cultural Center of the Philippines. For details call, Samahan ng mga Papetir ng Pilipinas, 439-14-71; Cultural Center of the Philippines, 832-1125, or e-mail papetir@gmail.com.

Aug. 13: Black Theater of Manila & Ony Carcamo
Aug. 14: ANINO Shadowplay Collective & Roppets Edutainment
Aug. 15: Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas & Tali Galaw

One more day!

Don Pasquale is a classic opera by Donizetti, and this production is a Filipinized version in terms of set, actors/singers and costume design. Of course, the words are still in Italian...so that's good for the language students!

Saw the first showing of this opera last week--for the final thesis production of my friend Gabi Francisco (the lady in red above)--and the voices were really great! I could close my eyes and listen, but I would miss the actions! Even if I didn't understand Italian, I understood the story through the gestures--proving that action is a language all on its own.

I'm no music major so forgive my lack of musical knowledge; but I write. From what little Italian I know, I think Donizetti as writer can be funny, using puns for names like Etcetera (the pastor who married Don Pasquale and Norina) and Malatesta (the doctor with the crazy idea). (I'm sure it would be whooping fun if I knew Italian.) Maybe if a Filipino poet and composer would adapt this opera in our beautiful language, it would gain a bigger audience--it's got the comedy we all love, mixed with a refreshingly classical style in music that is always buona for the testa.

Come and see our Opera for a Cause! Tickets to Don Pasquale will still be sold tomorrow at the booth by the UP College of Engineering Theater at P350! Don't forget, April 4, 2008, 6pm. See you there!

Papet Pasyon

I've learned so much from puppeteering with Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas: there are the numerous lessons on puppetry and stageplay, there's the giganormous one on teamwork and dedication, and finally there's the sincere belief of being able to open the eyes of the youth to the beauties of our own culture (and the many remarkable abilities of motivated people!), which is actually more like a virus you catch from Amelia Lapena-Bonifacio and her daughter Ami Bonifacio-Ramolete.

L-R: Felipe, Tomas, Juan, Jesus, Pedro, and Judas.

Right now, we're all busy with rehearsing for our annual Palm Sunday show, Papet Pasyon, which is a retelling of the passion and life of Christ in the form of puppetry. The photo above shows what is left of the original 12 apostles. The show has been running since 1984, and through the years the puppets have gotten worn out and replaced, and some got removed from the scenes, because as a trained-volunteer-dependent organization, we can't just turn up puppeteers in mid-air.

The good news is, we're more than ever this year, as some old puppeteers who have "graduated" have made a reappearance. We're working towards doing a complete Pasyon next year, and hopefully it pushes through. How nice it would be to begin the story from Creation!


Papet Pasyon and Mulat are featured this March in Baby Magazine, the first parenting magazine in the Philippines! I got these photos from the images we took for the magazine; Ditas Bermudez was behind the lens. Catch Papet Pasyon on Palm Sunday, March 16, at 3pm and 5:30pm, in Tita Amel's Children's Theater (TACT), 64 Mapagkawanggawa St., Teacher's Village East, Diliman, Quezon City.