Near the rear of the Metropolitan Theater as you turn left from Dr. Basa Street in Ermita, Manila, there’s a long, wide studio with open windows facing a wall of mirrors. The dancers of Alice Reyes Dance Philippines (ARDP) are trying on their animal costumes for the first time. Krislynne Buri, playing Paboreal (peacock), gets...
Author: Veronica Margarette Tapia (Veronica Margarette Tapia)
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Talaingod 13: What it means to commit ‘child abuse’
On July 15, the Tagum City Regional Trial Court Branch 2 in Davao del Norte rendered a guilty verdict on a “child abuse” case filed against 13 former and sitting lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives, as well as 10 lumad school teachers. “Wherefore,” the decision read, “in light of the...
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The American potato’s 7,000-mile adventure
First, you put all the dry ingredients in a big stainless bowl—200 grams of standard potato granules, 250g of all-purpose flour, and 3g of salt. Once they’re incorporated, you can form a well in the center for the wet ingredients—four eggs, 200 milliliters of water. Mix until everything coagulates into a stiff dough. You massage...
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Martial law 52nd: Little fires in the rain
The latest tropical depression had already exited the Philippine area of responsibility, but the rain persisted. In the morning, the weather bureau put out a thunderstorm advisory for Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon, and sure enough, it poured hard all afternoon before the skies gradually lightened on that evening of Sept. 21, the...
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BTS Army ‘Walk of Love’: Purple moving around the edges
Immediately at 7 a.m. on Sept. 8, a Sunday, you hear the music from the speakers as you walk across the park before even seeing the throngs of purple-shirted people gathered under the vast dome-like architectural canopy of the public space. The very center of this wide area is cordoned off in a square of...
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Alex Lacson and Rotary District 3810: A tension of viewpoints on patriotism
“I’m fighting for the truth,” he said, and the other countered: “We’re all fighting for the truth.” A meaningful tension of viewpoints hummed throughout the discourse that followed guest speaker Alex Lacson’s talk, titled “Patriotism and a Silent National Crisis,” during the Rotary Club of Manila Bay’s (RCMB) second membership meeting held last Aug. 15...
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Memory played by acoustic guitar (or the singer and her song)
It’s not every day you see an inebriated Lolita Carbon onstage with Cooky Chua and Bayang Barrios, singing their cover of Tropical Depression’s “Kapayapaan.” They sway, each voice husky, standing close together on what little space could be stood on in the slice of platform strewn with wires, mic stands, and effects pedals. In fact,...
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OPM artists to hold benefit show for Coritha
Singers and musicians are set to hold a fundraising gig on Monday, Aug. 5, for retired folk singer and OPM (Original Pilipino Music) legend Coritha, who has suffered a stroke that left her paralyzed and bedridden in her home in Tagaytay City. “Awit Para Kay Coritha” will start at 7 p.m. at My Brother’s Mustache...
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‘Zenless Zone Zero’ is right up an amateur gamer’s alley
You get up and go downstairs to shelves full of videotapes set against red bricks. Behind the counter, a robot bunny with an orange bandana is bouncing on its seat, staring at nothing with its yellow circles for eyes. You check out what’s on the neatly organized shelves. The videotapes’ cover art is so well-designed,...