Sayaw Filipino: a Study of Contrasting Representations of Philippine Culture
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SAYAW FILIPINO: A STUDY OF CONTRASTING REPRESENTATIONS OF PHILIPPINE CULTURE BY THE RAMON OBUSAN FOLKLORIC GROUP AND THE BAYANIHAN PHILIPPINE NATIONAL FOLKDANCE COMPANY KANAMI NAMIKI B.A. Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS SOUTHEAST ASIAN STUDIES PROGRAMME NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2007 Acknowledgement First of all, I would like to thank the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, National University of Singapore, for the generous grants and the opportunity they gave me to study at the university and write this research thesis. I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Prof. Reynaldo Ileto, who gave me valuable direction and insights and much-needed encouragement and inspiration. I applied to NUS because I wanted to learn and write my thesis under his supervision, and I have indeed learned a lot from him. I would like to also thank co-supervisor, Dr. Jan Mrazek, for his helpful advice and refreshing and insightful approach to the study of performing arts. It has been my great fortune to have Nikki Briones as my classmate and friend, and regular discussion-mate at NUS. She helped me articulate my thoughts and I am indebted to her for reading my draft and providing valuable suggestions, though she was also busy writing her own dissertation. I would like to also thank following individuals who gave me the support and advice over the years: Dr. Michiko Yamashita of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies; Dr. Hiromu Shimizu of the Kyoto University; Dr. Takefumi Terada of the Sophia University; Dr. Nagasura Madale of the Capitol University, Cagayan de Oro, for inviting me to Malawi and giving me opportunities to interview with dance practitioners in Mindanao; Dr. Micheal Tan and Dr. Eufracio Abaya of the University of the Philippines; and the staffs of various libraries that I had opportunity to use. Among them are Mauro Garcia Collection and the Institute of Asian Cultures Library of the Sophia University, the Cultural Center of the Philippines library, the Philippine Women’s University library, and the National Library of the Philippines. Finally, many thanks to Ramon Obusan and my co-dancers of Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group for their moral support, especially Marciano Viri, Raul Nepomuceno, Cherry Ylanan, Christine Carol Singson, Jhunnard Jhordan Cruz, Emelita Medina, Alfie Franco and Obusan’s family and my family in Japan. Table of Contents Summary List of Tables and Illustrations Abbreviations Cultural Map of the Philippines Ⅰ. “Haponesang Malandi”: Introduction Introduction 1 1. Aims of This Study 16 2. Review of Related Literature 17 3. Research Methodology and Conceptual Framework 21 Ⅱ. Philippine Folkdance and History Reconsidered 1. The Basic Suites of Philippine Folkdance Program 23 2. Philippine Folk Dances in the American Period 28 3. The Japanese Occupation and the Emergence of the Folkdance Theater 29 4. The Development of Folkdance in post-World WarⅡ 34 5. The “Golden Age of the Arts” in the Dark Age of Marcos Years 41 6. The Post-Marcos Years and the Two Directions of Philippine Folkdance 47 Ⅲ. Ramon Obusan and His Folkloric Group in Context 1. How Ramon Obusan Became a Bayanihan Dancer 51 2. Foundation of Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group 54 3. The Home of ROFG 58 4. The ROFG: An “Imagined” Entity 60 5. One Big Family with a Disciplinarian for a Father 63 6. Family Affairs: “Favoritism,” Quarrels and Sibling Rivalry 68 7. School of Living Tradition 68 8. Relationship with Local Communities 71 Ⅳ. Dancing Side by Side: The Bayanihan and ROFG Compared and Contrasted 1. Staged Art: The “Stylized” Performances of the Bayanihan 75 1.1. The Banga Dance of the Kalinga 77 1.2. The Singkil Dance of the Maranao: Bayanihan’s Version 79 1.3. The Maglalatik Dance: Bayanihan’s Treatment 82 1.4. Bayanihan’s Contemporary Sayaw sa Bangko 83 2. Oppositional Voices 84 3. The “Folkloric” Style of Obusan 91 3.1. Intaneg: the Ifugao Ritual 91 4. Close to the Original: Learning “Actual” Dance Movements 92 4.1. The Inim ritual of the Tagbanua: Learning to Move Like a Babaylan 94 5. Learning the Local Ways of Using Music and Costumes 96 6. Re-contextualization of Dance Events 98 6.1. The Pansak Dance of the Yakan people 99 6.2. The Mascota Dance of Cagayan Province 101 7. Obusan’s Dancers 104 8. Text and Image 105 9. Some Questions on the Issue of Authenticity 107 Ⅴ. The Logic of Two National Folkdance Companies: Conclusion 1. ROFG’s Variants of Philippine Folkdance Programs and Discourse of National Identity 112 2. Complementarity of the Bayanihan and ROFG 117 3. Memories of Obusan’s Last Dance 121 4. Dancing Between Two Cultures 124 Bibliography Appendices Glossary of Ramon Obusan’s Dances i Summary The Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group (ROFG) was founded in 1972 by Ramon Obusan, a former dancer-researcher of the pioneering Bayanihan Philippine National Folkdance Company. It has introduced a different perspective, a representational philosophy and aesthetic sensibility, and an approach to Philippine folkdance performance in marked contrast from the Bayanihan’s. Leaning on the vast amount of research and documentation of traditional culture it has accumulated, the ROFG has established its niche as promoter of Philippine dance that is performed in the “closest to the original” style. The ROFG, together with Bayanihan, are now the resident folkdance companies of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The dominant discourse on Philippine folkdance centers on the Bayanihan, and consequently, the ROFG is often marginalized, if not forgotten, as if there is only one state-sponsored folkdance company. Even if some books mention their name, the ROFG is often regarded as just an extension of the Bayanihan or as the same kind of theater folkdance company. However, the difference between these two companies should not be ignored, and in fact should be emphasized, because their contrasting approaches display the intellectual wealth that undergird the development of the cultural and artistic scene in the Philippines. These two companies show different approaches to addressing the national “crisis of identity,” and I see in the distinct tracks they follow, a complimentary relationship enabled by, rather than constrained by the difference in their philosophies. My objective in this study is to show the logic behind having two national folkdance companies, to show how their existence alongside each other is testament to the creative dynamism of Philippine folkdance, and at the same time, to convey the ii uniqueness of the ROFG, its approach to dance, pedagogic style, and aesthetic principles, its philosophy of representation, and most importantly, its notions of Filipino identity, drawn from my insights as one of the group’s non-Filipino performers. Performing with the ROFG has allowed me to access the vast amount of research and documentation of traditional culture of Filipinos, which was the result of Ramon Obusan’s life work. This knowledge is not always written down in the conventional book format, but it is in our training process that Obusan transmitted to us his knowledge. I have come to acquire a Filipino kinesthetic sense that has expanded my repertoire of bodily movements beyond those of my everyday Japanese motions, and I draw on this personal bodily transformation as a source from which to apply a phenomenological approach in analyzing the past and the present of Philippine folkdance. It is also my attempt to add to the kind of materials available on Philippine Folkdance, as well as to fill in gaps in the existing literature. In the process of explaining my argument, I will be referring to many different folkdances researched by Ramon Obusan. To make these dances more accessible to readers, I have compiled them into a glossary which appears at the end of the thesis. Although this glossary is only a partial list, it already gives us a glimpse of how rich a heritage Obusan has left us. iii Tables and Illustrations Table Lists of dance numbers under each suite 25 Illustrations 1. Ramon Obusan in Bagobo attire 3 2. Obusan’s Spanish-style house in Pasay city 3 3. With the Bayanihan dancers at their rehearsal studio 4 4. Obusan’s dancers in various “ethnic” costumes 5 5. Inside Obusan’s house 6 6. A casual performance given to TUFS group 6 7. “Filipino” or “Japanese” looking? 12 8. An example of a Filipina woman being graciously “malandi.” 13 9. At the performance of “Ritual Roots” at the CCP, July 2006 16 10. Photo of Cordillera Suite; Maria Clara Suite; Muslim Suite; Rural Suite; Lumad Suite dances 26 11. Aquino with U.P. Folk Song Dance Troupe 29 12. Leonor Orosa Goquingco 29 13. PWU dance group in Dacca, 1956 35 14. The Bayanihan’s Maria Clara costumes, 1959 and Tribal costumes, 1964 39 15. Igkas Kayumanngi, at Folk Arts Theater, 1974 44 16. Kasaysayan ng Lahi parade, 1974 46 17. Obusan’s “caveman” dance style 53 18. Obusan in the Bayanihan 54 iv 19. Picture of Imelda Marcos in a souvenir program, 1980 57 20. The porch of Obusan’s house and a weekday scene at the house 59 21. A dress rehearsal outdoors 60 22. RO kids 63 23. Children of Smokey Mountain 63 24. Preparation of costumes 66 25. Obusan’s lecture on various textiles 70 26. Burial attires for deceased man of Ifugao and tribal attires of Mandaya 70 27. Lapay Bantigue dance 72 28. Bayanihan Dancers 76 29. The Bayanihan’s version of Banga dance 77 30. The earlier version of Bayanihan’s Singkil and their Singkil in 1958 80 31. The Bayanihan’s version of Sayaw sa bangko and Kuntao 83 32. Landap Malong, Maranao 87 33.