PH Consulate General in Toronto Celebrates Independence Day with “Indak”
Unknown Floor Force dances to ethnic music on the opening number of the music concert “Indak,” in celebration of the Philippine Independence Day at Fleck Dance Theater on 22 June 2018. (Toronto PCG photo)
TORONTO 28 June 2018 — On the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the declaration of Philippine independence and the recent declaration of June as Filipino Heritage Month by the City of Toronto, the Philippine Consulate General organized the collaborative dance and music concert called “Indak” on 22 June 2018 at the Fleck Dance Theater.
Indak Artistic Director of Indak and York University Associate Professor Dr. Patrick Alcedo was thankful of the opportunity to bring together on one stage the five dance groups based in the Greater Toronto Area—Fiesta Filipina Dance Troupe, Folklorico Filipino of Canada, Culture Philippines in Ontario, Unknown Floor Force and Hataw—to celebrate these milestones.
“Indak choreographically embodies and musically scores these historic milestones of Filipinos, particularly those who now consider the Greater Toronto as their home away from home,” Alcedo said, describing Indak as particularly special to him since his brothers Paulo and Peter, respectively, were Indak’s head choreographer and musical director.
In her speech, Consul General Rosalita S. Prospero thanked Alcedo, his brothers, and the five dance groups for embarking on this project with the Philippine Consulate General. She thanked them for unselfishly giving much of their time, and sharing their talents to showcase Philippine dance and music in this part of the world.
The Consul General also acknowledged the generous support of the Philippine National Commission for Culture and the Arts and Philippine Airlines.
The Indak project is the culmination of the month-long celebration of the 120th anniversary of Philippine independence, and is a fitting tribute to the many contributions of Filipinos to Canada’s prosperity and rich cultural mosaic, she added.
The first part of Indak featured the Igorot suite composed of dances of the indigenous peoples that inhabited the mountainous central Cordillera region of northern Luzon. This was followed by the Spanish suite consisting of Spanish dances that Filipinos learned during the Spanish colonial period, and dances that came from the islands of Mindanao, the provenance of Muslim Filipinos and lumad or tribal communities.
The latter part of the show featured break dancing accompanied with ethnic Filipino music, and a contemporary rendition of Philippine folk dance, modern forms and ballet.
Indak’s head cheorographer Paulo Alcedo performed a heartfelt solo number depicting the common sentiment of overseas Filipinos of pining and longing for home.
The last suite was called Rural or Barrio composed of dances by lowland Christian Filipinos as they celebrate a successful harvest or mark their festivals. The audience was serenaded with kundiman, classical and pop pieces by a group of young and talented instrumentalists from the Phillippines-Robert Andrew Punzalan, Michael John Samaniego, and Jun Christian Vivar. The suite ended with what is considered by many as a national dance of the Philippines, the popular dance called Tinikling. END
For more information, visit www.torontopcg.dfa.gov.ph/ www.philcongen-toronto.com or https://www.facebook.com/PHinToronto
Clockwise from the top: Justine Del Rosario and Alvin Gadong of CPO dances the Paunjalay, a dance performed by a Yakan couple before marriage; Garbed in colorful costumes, members of Fiesta Filipina Dance Troupe perform Singkil; Sayaw sa Bangko; Also known as the bamboo dance, Tinikling is considered by many as the national dance of the Philippines. (Toronto PCG photo)
Indak’s head cheorographer Paulo Alcedo performs a heartfelt solo number to the song “Nasaan Ka Man” by Martin Nievera, depicting the common sentiment of overseas Filipinos of pining and longing for home. (Toronto PCG photo)
Dr. Patrick Alcedo joins his brothers Paulo and Peter and the whole cast of Indak in the closing number.
The cast of Indak takes a bow and thanks the audience. (Toronto PCG photo)