|
For years, Filipinos in Hawaii have joined the Honolulu Festival, a
homegrown festivity of natives and migrants in the 50th state of the
United States marked by music, dance, art and culture.
The Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu
also participated in the 14th Honolulu Festival, held for three days
from March 14 to 16. The Consulate’s participation is part of
its public diplomacy and cultural outreach program.
The Honolulu Festival is Hawaii’s premier
cultural event promoting understanding, economic cooperation and
ethnic harmony between the people of Hawaii and the Asia-Pacific
region.
Each year, the Festival draws thousands of new
and returning spectators who are looking for an experience beyond
Hawaii. Through educational programs and activities sponsored
by the Honolulu Festival Foundation, a nonprofit organization, the
Festival continues to successfully share the rich and vibrant blend
of the Asian and Hawaiian cultures with the rest of the world.
Philippine participation in the festival was
highlighted by the Cagayan State University’s Panaddamman Dance
Troupe who traveled to Hawaii with the assistance of the Department
of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu,
the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and the Department
of Tourism.
The group’s street dancing mile repertoire at
the Grand Parade received rounds of applause from the thousands of
spectators throughout the one-mile avenue in Waikiki.
Under the tutelage of Allan Samonte,
Panaddamman’s choreographer and artistic director, the groups’
performances showcased a collage of Philippine ethnic dances and
movements that were perfectly synchronized with modern dance tunes
tracing the origins of the Filipino dance from the aborigines to the
contemporary global Filipino.
The Consulate also mobilized local groups from
the Filipino community—Bibak Hawaii, the Katipunan and
Bullalayao Philippine Dance Company from the University of Hawaii
(UH) at Manoa—for the Grand Parade on March 16.
Katipunan and Bullalayao are made up of
Filipino-American students in the Philippine Studies Program of the
UH and Bibak Hawaii is an active Filipino community organization
composed of natives of Benguet, Ifugao, Bontoc, Apayao, Abra, and
Kalinga.
The three groups were dressed in Philippine
costumes and performed ethnic dances during the street dancing
parade on March 16.
Also featured during the Grand Parade were three
beauty queens of the Filipino community: Ms. Teen Filipina Hawaii,
Melissa McMurray; Ms. Oahu Filipina, Jerryca Gasmen; and Mrs. Hawaii
Filipina, Emme Anderson.
The ladies wore terno and participated in the
parade with pride and poise, ably showcasing Panaddamman also
participated in the parade with pride and poise, ably showcasing the
Filipina’s famed grace and beauty.
Panaddamman also participated in the Honolulu
Festival’s Educational School Tour held at the Hawaii Convention
Center on March 14. It gave students the opportunity to get a
close-up look at Festival exhibits and a chance to meet and talk
with Festival artisans and performers. Panaddamman members shared
their knowledge of Philippine culture through interactive
demonstrations of various ethnic Philippine dances.
The Craft Fair was held on March 15 and 16 at
the Hawaii Convention Center. The Consulate participated in
the Craft Fair in coordination with the Department of Tourism Office
in Los Angeles by having an exhibition booth focused on the
Philippines as a prime tourist destination.
|
