By Joel David There will always be ambivalence surrounding the Filipino word for performer: artista. The word it suggests in English is in many ways opposed to the notion of an artist, standing apart from issues of popularity and financial success. This is why the first film star recognized as National Artist, Nora Aunor, underwent […]
By Cristina DC Pastor When St. Adalbert Church in Queens was looking for a Filipino dance group to perform at a religious event, word got around fast. Helen Kwong-LaBarbera of Long Island responded quickly and gathered Filipino families who shared her excitement. Thus, was born Island Gems Philippine Cultural Group which became known for their […]
By Len Manansala In the fraught world of festival organizing, no other indoor Filipino event on the U.S. East Coast has demonstrated similar constancy more than Fiesta In America. Founded in 1996 in New York City and mounted every year except during the 2020-2021 pandemic, Fiesta In America lays claim to being the most enduring […]
The Atlantic Pacific Theatre is staging Luis Francia’s play “The Strange Case of Citizen de la Cruz” from August 10-13, as part of the Ice Factory Festival sponsored by New Ohio Theatre. Claro de los Reyes and Robert Thaxton-Stevenson are directing. Set in an unspecified time in the Philippines, this political satire explores the phenomena of […]
By Lindy Rosales Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer came early at 11:18 a.m. for the parade that was to start at 12 noon. He came to shake hands with Filipino American leaders…and to apologize. “I’m sorry I can’t come march with you today, it’s my 50th college reunion. But I did want to come here […]
Don Darryl Rivera is a self-professed “Disney nerd.” A glimpse inside his Mickey Mouse- and Aladdin-lamp-decorated office is big giveaway. When he learned he earned the role as Iago in the Broadway musical Aladdin, it was quite an emotional experience. “I distinctly remember my hands going numb as a I got the call from the […]
Stella Abrera, former Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theatre, has been named Acting Artistic Director of the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. The appointment, effective August 22, was announced by Kevin McKenzie, Artistic Director of American Ballet Theatre. Abrera has served as Artistic Director of Kaatsbaan Cultural Park in Tivoli, New York since June 2020, […]
By Loida Nicolas Lewis What a surprise to discover Martin Bakari, a Filipino-African American operatic tenor whose mother was born in Naga City, Camarines Sur and whose father is from Zanzibar, Tanzania. Bakari recently performed as the tenor soloist at Carnegie Hall in the well-attended “Carmina Burana” concert of the Cecilia Chorus of New York. “Praised by […]
In her short film “Malditas,” Filipina-Puerto Rican filmmaker Bree Nieves documents how her Catholic Filipino community grappled with grief after the death of her Uncle Vince. The director centers the film around herself and her cousin Giselle coming to terms with their new reality in the conservative Florida county where they were raised. Through heartbreak and celebration, […]