Kularts Kicks Off Crowdfunding Campaign for Jay Loyola's Dance Production "Maseg"
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Jay Loyola's Maseg
An adopted son of the Tagbanua Tribe, Loyola was a former Bayanihan Dance Company principal dancer and associate choreographer under Philippine National Artist Lucrecia Reyes Urtula. In Maség Loyola follows the theatrical framework of Shakespeare’s classic, The Tempest, to tell a magical story of tribal shaman leader Masikampo Panglima, through contemporary choreography steeped in indigenous Philippine dance.
“The elegance and fierce physicality of Philippine dance can tell any story. Yes it will be innovative but inherently Philippine dance!” –Jay Loyola, choreographer
Set in pre-colonial times, on the imagined typhoon-battered island of Puló in Palawan, Maség, focuses on the mystical tale of the once powerful and righteous tribal shaman leader, Masikampo Panglima, who is exiled with his daughter to the Puló Island where he plots his vicious revenge.
He cruelly manipulates and enslaves the ruling deities of Puló, Kapre of the Forest and Deres of the Water and Wind, into creating a powerful storm to sink his enemies’ balangay ship. Shipwrecked, his enemies are separated and lost in Puló. Masikampo Panglima casts a spell on his daughter Matinlóh to seduce his enemy’s son, Kisig. Struck by his own unspeakable acts of injustice and manipulations, Masikampo Panglima suffers gut-wrenching internal conflict threatening to destroy his very soul. Will he abandon his vengeful streak and end the hateful feud between their families or continue on the path of destruction?
The full-length dance will be performed by twelve dancers to an original score of haunting melodies and driving polyrhythmic percussion by Florante Aguilar, creator of the award-winning documentary, Harana: The Search for the Lost Art of Serenade.
“The Philippines is an archipelago of many cultures, it seems only natural to me to combine these musical languages. In this composition I’m excited to explore the combination of chants and gong traditions, the polyrhythms of the percussion, and the melodies of the two-string kutyapi lute.” –Florante Aguilar, composer
The summer crowdfunding campaign goal is to raise $10,000 to present two nights at the San Francisco’s historic Brava Theater. If funds surpass the $10,000 mark, funds will be used to greatly increase Maség’s production value:
If $15,000 is raised—special lighting design will be added to the production
If $20,000 is raised—costumes will be made from authentic Philippines textile
If $25,000 is raised—there will be a free outdoor performance
If $35,000 is raised—there will be an exclusive free outdoor performance with free catering by award-winning chef Tim Luym, A Chronicle Rising Star Chef
Interested donors can check out the crowdfunding page to learn more (https://www.locallift.com/campaigns/sanfrancisco/kularts/), as well the various rewards offered to specific donation amounts. Some rewards include:
$15—Digital download of the music created by Florante Aguilar
$25—A silkscreened event signed poster
$35—A limited edition Maség t-shirt
$45—1 general admission to the show
$65+ receives combinations of rewards, and our ultimate donors receive exclusive rewards:
$200
Special Dinner for 2 at the Attic
(2) general admission tickets to the show
(2) silkscreened event signed poster
(1) limited edition Maség t-shirt
$500: Producer
Associate Producer credit
Special Dinner for 4 at the Attic
w/ dance excerpt ‘peek’ of Maség
(4) VIP admission ticket to the show
(4) silkscreened signed event poster
(2) limited edition Maség t-shirt
$1000:
Private access to rehearsal
Associate Producer credit
Special Dinner for 8 at the Attic
w/dance excerpt ‘peek’ of Maség
(8) VIP admission ticket to the show
(8) silkscreened signed event poster
(2) limited edition Maség t-shirt
Exclusive personal lunch with director
All rewards come are accompanied with a special thank-you shout out on our Social Media channels.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MASEG / CROWD FUNDING CAMPAIGN
Contact:
Lovelie Faustino
Kularts
415.239.0249
program@kularts.org
ABOUT KULARTS:
Founded in 1985, Kularts is the premier presenter of contemporary and tribal Pilipino arts in the United States. We are a non-profit arts organization based in San Francisco, California.
Our mission is to inform and expand the understanding of American Pilipino culture and preserve the spirit and integrity of ancient Pilipino art forms. We produce innovative artistic works; foster mentorship among emerging and established artists; facilitate local and international collaborations; design and implement educational outreach programs for elementary through college age students; lead cultural tours to the Philippines; and more.
ABOUT ALLELUIA PANIS:
Alleluia Panis, Artistic and Executive Director, is the driving force behind Kulintang Arts, Inc. (Kularts) and respected elder artist in the US and the Philippines. She is an artist who is at home in both Pilipino tribal & traditional arts and American contemporary forms.
She has received grant awards from the Rockefeller Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, New Langton Arts, the San Francisco Arts Commission-Individual Artists, Creative Work Fund and Gerbode Foundation. She has created fifteen full-length dance theaters works since 1980, which have been performed on main stages in the US, Europe and Asia.
She has collaborated with numerous artists, including: National Heritage Fellow Danongan Kalanduyan, composers Florante Aguilar, Jon Jang, Fred Ho, Santiago Bose, Sean San Jose, among others. In 2012 she collaborated with Cherrie Moraga in the world premiere of New Fire produced by Brava Theater Center and Jeannie Barroga in Buffalo’ed produced by San Jose Stage. She was the Managing Director for Brava Theater Center and ODC Theater. She has participated in numerous panels including the National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, Theater Communications Group, the Ethnic Dance Festival and was an artist committee member for National Performance Network, Yerba Buena Festival. She was a fellow for The J.P. Shannon and Rockwood Leadership Institutes. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center.
ABOUT JAY LOYOLA:
In the past two decades, Jay Loyola has created over 40 Pilipino folk dance works and performed in Asia, Europe, and the US. He has significantly contributed to the Bay Area’s multicultural landscape, creating performances at venues such as the Palace of Fine Arts, Cowell Theater, the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, and the Filipino-American Arts Exposition.
Loyola spent his youth exploring the world of dance through a series of immersions to tribal communities, dance competitions, and international dance festivals. He travelled the world as a principal dancer for the prestigious Philippine Bayanihan Dance Company and trained as choreographer under the National Philippine Artist Lucrecia Urtula Reyes. Loyola has extensively researched the rituals and traditions of the tribal people of Palawan and has become an adopted Tagbanua in the highlands of Palawan in the Philippines.
Loyola is the Founder Emeritus of Palawan Dance Theater, now the premier dance company of the region. He moved to the US in 2006 and served as Dance Director of LIKHA Philippine Folk Ensemble ’07-08.
His awards include “Young Alumni Achiever in Arts and Humanities” by Holy Trinity College, and the nomination for an Isadora Duncan Award for his 2008 collaboration with Rudy Soriano, Kadayawan. He is now the Artistic Director of the American Center of Philippine Arts and teaches Philippine dance at the University of San Francisco. He has received grants from the Creative Work Fund, the National Endowment for the Arts and East Bay Community Foundation.
ABOUT FLORANTE AGUILAR:
Florante Aguilar is one the leading figures championing Philippine music art forms in the US and international markets today. He advances and popularizes Philippine music through the medium of film, recordings and live performances. His arrangements and compositions successfully craft the right balance between respect and redefinition of a tradition.
Born in Manila, Aguilar grew up in Cavite province where he learned to play the octavina in a rondalla group. By 16 he was enrolled at the University of the Philippines College of Music where he was trained as a classical musician. He later moved to New York under scholarship to study at the Manhattan School of Music. He received his Bachelor of Music Degree at the San Francisco Conservatory for Music.
His constant search for a tradition-based contemporary Filipino sound led him to champion harana music - songs used in the now-vanished Filipino courtship ritual of serenading, and the subject of the award-winning 2012 documentary, Harana: The Search for the Lost Art of Serenade, which he wrote and produced with his wife and partner, Fides Enriquez. Aguilar has released several CD albums under the private label New Art Media.
As a composer, Aguilar uses strong Philippine motifs in a modern context, and has been granted numerous composition awards from prestigious institutions. In partnership with Kularts and through grants from the San Francisco Arts Commission, Aguilar composed Lalawigan - A Tagalog Song Cycle in 2009 and Aswang - Tales of Lore in 2013.