The last of the free women

It began strangely enough: the audience was asked to stand for the Philippine National Anthem, and three women’s voices started singing “Lupang Hinirang.”

And then the lights go on and Cooky Chua and Bayang Barrios are at two separate aisles in the audience area singing “Sana’y Pag-ibig Na Lang.” Lolita Carbon only knows to make a grand rakenrol entrance of course, which is to say that she does it with a swag