Sweeping review of Mabuhay festival (Toronto)
Here’s my latest column published in the Aug. 1-15, 2008 issue of The Philippine Reporter:
Notebook
By Hermie Garcia
Sweeping review of Mabuhay festival (Toronto)
I attended the Mabuhay Festival at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre last July 19 and I witnessed the huge success of the event.
Jun Enverga, President of the Philippine Independence Day Council (PIDC) says it was the biggest attendance so far in Mabuhay’s history. That’s true. I saw Mabuhay fest held at Harbourfront, several times at Metro Convention and one time at CNE Grounds. In most times, the crowd were sparse and some parts of the shows were ho-humm… some of the booth vendors said sales were not good enough and many food vendors complained about the sparse crowd.
These complaints and the lack of a substantial crowd led to various problems which included financial losses for the event organizers and the vendors.
But these may be a thing of the past. Almost two weeks after the event, I have yet to hear a buzz from complaining participants.
The huge turnout in the latest Mabuhay can be deservedly credited to the organizers, led by the Jun and Rosemer Enverga couple; Minda Neri, the event chair; Bernie Sychangco; Imee Belanger; Pete Mauricio; Ben Corpuz and the rest of the very able PIDC team and volunteers.
Most of the numbers were good , to say the least and some were awesome, to say the most. The dance troupes Fiesta Filipina and Culture Philippines were mesmerizing with their amazing dancers and their vibrantly colorful costumes. Against the huge Philippine flag as backdrop, you could describe the scenes magnificent.
Lilac Cana and Emil Zarris put up a classy number with songs the audience just relished and showed it with much applause. The Musika ng Ating Bayan was a pleasant relief from the seriousness and tradition-steep previous numbers. I liked the jeepney and karaoke bar scenes with Josie de Leon and Chyrell Samson.
I heard the San Lorenzo Ruiz Choir rendered a moving Bayan Ko number that touched a patriotic chord in many people’s hearts. Fiesta Filipina’s Bayani that featured Filipino heroes Bonifacio, Aguinaldo and Melchora Aquino reminded us of our historical struggle for freedom. After all, Mabuhay’s theme was the 110th independence day anniversary.
Note that PIDC supported Tejada’s fight for permanent residence in its Earl
Bales Park picnic. At the Mabuhay, Tejada was invited to join on stage the PIDC officers and some politicians that included Secretary of State for Multiculturalism Jason Kenney. It was appropriate to celebrate the Tejada victory at a huge event like Mabuhay. Problem is, it looked like the politicians were largely responsible for Tejada’s being granted eligibility for permanent residency. Fact is, her application was denied twice and were it not for community action and cries of injustice aired in the media, she would have been “removed” from Canada now.
Another sour note is the distasteful jokes and antics of event star Ai Ai de las Alas. She started with her series of jokes about the color, odour and shape of the genitals of the youth and adults. The crowd roared with laughter and it looked like they enjoyed her green and obscene jokes. But when she continued relentlessly and it seemed like they consisted the major part of her performance, I saw people shaking their heads. Aside from a few lively songs and the dirty jokes, she spent a large chunk of her time making four members of the audience inanely dance and compete on stage. Worse, she asked money from members of the audience who requested her to sing specific songs or have pictures taken with her. It was all in good fun, of course. But I heard comments like, “Was she underpaid by the organizers?” (Fact: She was paid a huge sum.)
In fairness to the organizers, I heard they did not know the staple of De las Alas’s performances. I watched some of them looked flabbergasted by it all. Also, she was warned that the event was a family-oriented show. But could you blame her? She has made a huge fortune from her kind of show in the Philippines, Asia, Europe and north America. Her fans love her for that. Well, some audience.
But this notwithstanding, this year’s Mabuhay was a huge success. I heard people say you’d be proud you’re Filipino when you witness a day-long event and show like that. Well, almost. Except maybe for the western-oriented fashion show which had no relevance to the occasion, and the overdone beauty pageants.
To sum up, Mabuhay made a headstart this year with historical content and relevance (Tejada issue, GK charity). Cultural content was superb. However, there’s room for improvement in handling non-relevant matters.