Cultural work

Clockwise: Frank Cimatu, Mae Paner, the blogger, Edna Aquino, Kervin Calabias and Kelly Ramos

Yesterday marked my first official meeting for 2019. Meaning, this was no longer socializing and meeting holiday obligations. This was defining a project, setting realistic goals, assigning duties, sourcing possible funds.

It helped that convening the meeting were cultural activists Mae P. Paner, a.k.a. Juana Change, and Edna Aquino. After initial sips of coffee or tea, we buckled down to work at a long table at Hill Station. The January afternoon weather was kind, not bitterly cold, so it was conducive to agreements and agreements to disagree. With us were fellow writers Frank Cimatu, Kelly Ramos and Kervin Calabias.

The project is the mounting of, hope I can announce it now, guys, "Tao Po," described as a a monologue for four characters on extra-judicial killings by Ms. Paner on Feb. 8 at the University of the Cordilleras (time and specific venue at UC to be finalized).

The next day, Feb. 9, Ms. Paner will conduct a theater workshop for Baguio youth to raise their awareness of human rights. The all-day workshop will culminate in a showcase of the participants' output. Venue is still the UC.

The organizers of these twin events, which are part of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR)-led "Artists for Human Rights / Luzon Project," are Let's Organize for Democracy and Integrity (LODI), Dap-ayan ti Kultura iti Kordilyera (DKK), the UC, HUDYAT (Artists for Human Dignity) and the Baguio Writers Group led by newly elected president Kelly Ramos.

Expect that in the next couple of weeks, we will be making some social media noise about "Tao Po" and the theater workshop--two avenues for promoting, at the risk of repeating myself, human rights. Mabuhay!

Belated pats on everyone's back

With less than a month to plan, plot, market, rehearse, look for sponsor/s, the Baguio Writers Group under Jennifer Patricia A. Cariño, my hijada, I always like to boast, produced in cooperation with Hill Station Restaurant "Fever: An Evening of Love Songs and Poetry" early this love month. Before the Panagbenga, the Philippine Military Academy alumni reunion, before other Arts Month activities took off.

Being writers, the group must have the good or bad habit (depending on how you look at it) of getting last-minute dopamine-cum-adrenaline shots that enable us to converge and put together our energies, whether we're composing commissioned handwritten love letters, baking heart-shaped rum cakes or singing and reading our hearts out to keep The Word alive.

To all who were there for us, family, friends, lovers and other strangers, a big thank you for making Feb. 6 a night that continues to sparkle in our memories. Onwards to the next project!

Guitarist Ian Paolo Acosta and singer Lissa Romero de Guia testing the Hill Station's sound system before the evening performance Photos by Babeth Lolarga

Merci Javier Dulawan and Padma Perez "womanning" our "Love (Letters) for Sale" table at the Hill Station Bar. On the piano is one of the pre-ordered rum cakes baked by Toottee Chanco Pacis. We had, if my count is correct while it was my turn to watch the table, five commissions that evening. More came in through our online campaign.

Jenny Cariño reads her lovely poems from the cell phone's screen.

Kervin Calabias recites from memory Joi Barrios's poem honoring the disappeared (desaparecidos).

BWG vice president and literature Prof. Junley Lorenzana Lazaga reads an Iluko poem by Leona Florentino, a cultural and literary heroine.

Lissa enchants, enthralls and engages us with her wonderful voice. To this day, her encore piece "Lullaby of Birdland" is stuck as my last song syndrome.

Lissa, queen of the night, with her bouquet and some members and officers of BWG. Thank you, whoever took this shot. I was in Cloud 9 then.