Filipiniana Chic is a Cultural Phenomenon

As men's apparel...

As visual culture...

As industry...

As design innovation...

the sensuality and virility of Philippine folk dances

Tinikling requires agility and virility of both female and male dancers. One can only imagine how those well-toned, brown bodied lasses jump their way over the bamboo trappings in syncopated rhythm, their nubile chests rise and fall in beat, while their male partners and onlookers catch brief glimpses of their supple calves.

I may become overly ambitious to stage such concept production. But thoughts about what Philippine dances could be like minus the Catholic-colonization sense of decorum is a very potent temptation. After all, sex sells. If you seriously believe that the future of Philippine dance industry (or hardly an industry) lies in the hands of CCP theater goers in formal wear and SUVs, then expect that in 10 years time we will have show dancing as one of Visita Iglesia attractions. Yes, I know that it is too Miss-Tapia-starchy stiff as a future trend. If anything, one should take a 360 on what the drag dancers dance makers are doing for fiesta dance parade tourist attractions. That one has potential of sustaining itself, and don't you even start on giving me the lowdown about the lowbrow and highbrow art.

Better yet, one of the local indie film producers could make a short film series out of this. As I believe, historical pictures need not be asexual and ailing. I imagine it to mostly have physical acting as brilliant as Apocalypto.

Tuba plantation in Quezon is a spectacle. I've come to realize that much of our production skills require nimble feet. And yes, Filipinos are never flat-footed. I wonder if this trait has anything to do why we are head-over-heels in love with basketball and boxing.

One other thing, we also have a fondness for playthings. Yes, playthings, not the bedtime props playthings (that's going to be another article that I will write) but impromptu playthings. Resourcefulness and playfulness combined, we are the masters of movement improvisation indeed. Tinikling, singkil, sayaw sa bangko, patpat, pandango sa ilaw, binasuan, and not to mention our own version of krumping, maglalatik, these dances not only show off attitude and highly-skilled exhibitionism but also, and not surprisingly, rhythmic musicality. The use of found objects in these dances doesn't only provide us with complex movement improvisation but also nourishes our minds with rich auditory treats. Creative movement proponents should take note of this. One very promising choreographer is attentive enough to pick this up as a source of inspiration, Raul Alcoseba of Chameleon Dance Theatre used plastic sando bags and newspapers in one of his dance pieces.

Tittering bare feet against the dirt, smiles and notions of festivities. That is what folk dancing is like. Dum dum tak in mid tempo of rondalla promotes ease in fluid movements albeit on toes. Interesting. I might have seen remnants of this folk dance default in one of the town fiesta's pasayaw as some of the Tatangs and Manangs brung it on. When projecting folksy ambiance, a stiff back, clenched stomach, and haughty chin are big no-nos. Well, except of course if it is the singkil but even so, stiff back and clenched stomach for a Lakambini is not so princess-like. In general, Filipina maidens dance off-centered, almost entirely relying upon their nimble feet to keep their balingkinitan bodies upright while in motion.

Which reminds me how I almost not survive walking on Quezon red-earth mud because I've been stubbornly using my urban legs. Walking the grimy asphalt streets of Manila condones motion on the hips while stomping hard enough on the pavement to shake a few dangles and accoutrements on your clothes ala catwalk biatch, and sometimes slightly bending your knees to set off a bouncy and cheeky walk ala Travolta in Staying Alive. But if you ever use this strut in mid-September Quezon claypot mud, you're dead. Ball to toes weightshifting is going to be futile. The trick is to distribute weight on sole as evenly as possible and walk as quick and lightly as possible as if you're stepping on burning coals.

Similarly, walking your streetwise strut on rocky downhills will send you off the cliff. The trick here is to bend your knees to absorb the shocks kinda like skiing, keep your legs apart and put the weight on the outer edges of your feet. No wonder mountain feet look like giant cashew nuts. And if ever you find yourself walking downhill on desert sand dunes, apply the same steps but this time put your weight on your heels to prevent you from skidding on sand.

Curacha Night: Filipino Social Dance

Last Saturday night was a dazed and confused event for me. Somewhere in Pasig City, a faux rainforest houses a forlorn collection of zoo creatures. They must have woken up cranky the next morning after a boisterous night of Pasayaw loudspeakers disturbed their sleep.

It was very surprising for me to have discovered how Samar country folks dance with remarkable ease and jovial confidence which is really infectious. You should get a look at the men, how they were. It was like a heady mixture of male athleticism, spontaneity, naughtiness and even goofiness. While on the curvier side of things, the women effortlessly sway their hips like they were born to do just that. Not a muscle in their body was flexed, tense or even tucked. They looked so coy and naïve, commanding yet easy going, wholesome and seductive at the same time. It is not so much like la pasionata attitude in Latin dances, where violence and romance and sex mingled so seamlessly. It was distinctively Pilipino in ambiance. The mood was festive and everybody moves like bees in spring harvest and floats like breezy butterflies on rice fields. A snack of Lemon square and doy pack juice and of course, Red Horse extra strong adds fuel for an outgoing behaviour.

So, there I was trying hard to keep in time with the polymelodic beat of rondalla while consciously toning down a neo-filipino cultural dance haughty stance by softening my frame and shoulders and plastering a nervous smile to onlookers when this tall, long-legged moreno came out of nowhere. And out of nowhere I mean the disc jockey set that he was steering. There was an awkward hand shake before anything moves. Then the music begins. His giant strides were quite a threat and sent me to panic during the first seconds. Thank goodness for extensions training back in the Dansa days. My gluts trembled in shock when I have to power and speed dance a lacuracha combination. Because if I don't I would most certainly end up smothered against his chest as he was quite so tall and fast-moving. He must have enjoyed the cruelty of cornering me against the monobloc tables and chairs while watching me patter away like a flustered old maid virgin. Pahabol is supposed to go both ways, the man chases the woman and the woman chases the man. It's a common bucolic style of courting through dance. One-two-three step-ball-change shouldn't be so challenging. Since when did folk dancing become so difficult and uneasy like doing a Lambada with a legitimately good-looking and legitimately heterosexual dance partner? Instead of a laidback exchange of footwork configurations, the dance morphed into a fight or flight engagement. But in my case it was wholly flight. To get away from him as quick and as far as possible lest I ended up bumping against him. He was relentless. I couldn't even look at his face for fear of losing my vertical stance, literally and figuratively. And may I remind you that we are alone on the dance floor with everybody's eyes upon us. Like how my senior high school teacher would describe it, I was sweating like a piglet from hell. I couldn't mouth “please

stop”, I was concerned about how inappropriate I would look with my nervous, and mind you, very hard nipples poking through my fitted sports-collared cotton shirt. The moments hung in the air like thick molasses poured on honey pots. I couldn't describe it more authentically bakya than that. I'd stopped feeling giddy, hell, I'd stopped feeling anything at all when my body went numb. A series of images that I can hardly consciously comprehend. I saw blurs of black sneakers and camouflage long shorts and grinning faces. Funny, how I ended up taking the lead without actual contact points and by moving backward, careful not to bump any plastic furnitures along the way. Only after I've fidget in my pocket and pulled out my sweat-damp handkerchief did he decide to signal by squeezing my left wrist with both of his hands and stopped mauling me over with his paso doble strides. I walked over to our table and coyly slouched to hide my guilty evidence. I watched him as he walked and disappeared behind a concrete column where his set waited for him. Damn, it was only later that I realized that he must have pulled a stand off and deliberately “krump” his moves so I would get intimidated. So, okay, he's the man. He definitely wants to be on top (of me?). He must have enjoyed it so much when I melted in a pathetic heap of wobbly legs and flushed chest.

Dance Craze Moves on TV Commercials, Dancing Prisoners, Arnis

Is it just me or talagang may dance-craze-in-commercials trends na nagaganap?

1. craze craze do the ice craze
2. maglaro-laro tayo ng isang noodle product
3. sa- wa -hi- or watever da pak basta body pain killer endorsed by Manny Pacquiao
4. lakas-sigla? not sure kung sandwich spread, not sure din kung lakas sigla ang tagline, basta household/family scene e
5. kiddie sweet snacks, jelly ata or sumthin
6. tonetoneladang mga batang sumasayaw, gatas endorsed by Ate Vi
7. Money remittance service, mga cheerleaders na naka yellow outfit. A couple of months ago, near Gilmore area, around 8 in the evening. Sarado na ang isang bangko pero bukas ang ilaw sa loob. Nasilip ko may mga badudels na nagpa-praktis ng cheering routine. Siguro eto na ang final performance ng practice na yun. Isang TV Commercial.
8. May bagong routine ang dancing prisoners, Jai-ho. Feeling ko may kagagawan sila sa pagsulpot ng mga dance-craze TV commercials na ito. At eto pa, yung movie ni Rob Schneider na Big Stan, may mga dancing prisoners din. Salsa routine nga lang. But just the same. Pero ha, I think si clean-living idol Robin Padilla ang pasimuno sa mainstreaming ng arnis. At eto pa ulit, sa movie Big Stan nag-arnis action sequence si Rob Schneider.

Teka, hindi ba dapat dance studio mirror ang kaharap ko imbes na TV screen?

A(H1N1), Malate and a Fashion Web Marketing Job

Amidst the scare and all, I braved the grimy streets of Malate along Vito Cruz and Ocampo Sr. St.

I was really paranoid sitting inside LRT car habang may ubos-biyayang umuubong ale a few metres away. Bago pa man ako sumakay, si Manong Guard bumahing without covering his mouth. He was a yard away from me. Yikes!
Sa totoo lang hindi naman talaga ako maarte, napapraning lang talaga ako sa pandemic flu.

***
During the interview, I was all over the place. I was this and that. I never intended to sound too eager pero I kept defending myself na I'm really into fashion, as culture and as web marketing challenge.

Paano ba naman kasi, she (Madame Interviewer A) kept on insisting that she find it rather "malayo sa field" ko. From NGO geek, rights issues and all tapos mag-aapply ako sa Fashion Industry post. She even mentioned the word "shallow" when it comes to fashion. Kept on implying (or maybe praning lang ako) to me that I will get bored with the fashion thing because I'm used to "deep" kuno stuff like advocacy, development work, and child and nature stuff.

This thing actually surprised me. Sa panahon ngayon natatali pa rin pala ang mga tao sa stereotypes. What? Are you saying that just because one's field is in fashion it cannot be considered as important as environmental and development work? What type of image ng babae ang nasa isip niya when world issues are mentioned? Martir at endlessly selfless like Mother Theresa? Sumalangit nawa.

Narinig ko na before sa isang movie "Raising Helen" that family and fashion don't mix. Parang ang kulang na lang sa nangyari kanina ay sabihin sakin na "fashion and the future of mankind don't mix."

Ano kaya ang konsepto niya ng mahalagang profession? Yung tipong "save the planet, save the seas (save the cheerleader)" mode? What? You mean fashion is frivolity? Dapat pala I mention to her na I dance and I spend so much time sweating and torturing my body inside dance studios. Tulad ng fashion, ano nga ba ang dance? Bakit, hindi ka naman mamatay kung walang fashion at kung walang dance a! Pero bakit ginagawa ko pa rin ang pagsasanay sa dance?

****
Madame Interviewer B, she was such a pretty chinita. Again, I was asked bakit fashion? I fit the job description and I am into fashion (minus the designer-label-buying aspect, of course). Tamang hinala pa din ba? eAdvocacy = fashion web marketing. They both involve networking, information design, effective communication, rich multimedia experience, Granovetter's strength in weak ties. But, of course, I would sound like a manic geek yapper if I mentioned any of these concepts. Tapos this absurd question came up, "if a genie could grant your dream job... I blurted out New Media Artist. And I went on a tirade about this and that. That medium in its practice is not tangible at all. NMA basically tackles the issues of the 21st like privacy paradox, nodes and bits traffic, augmented realities, cultures of knowledge, research process could be considered as one of NMA's artistic output. WTF, it was too late. Sana pala sinabi ko na lang I wanted to become Naomi Campbell.