Wazzup Pilipinas News and Events

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Rak of Aegis: A Rock Comedy Musical Featuring the Songs of Aegis

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RAK OF AEGIS is a rock comedy musical using the songs of Aegis that will tackle Filipino resilience, or how the country faces and resolves compromising situations, whether this be a natural disaster or a broken heart.

Set in a subdivision that has been flooded for two months, “Rock of Aegis” will revolve around the love interests of the main characters, whose names are derived from those of Aegis band members
as a tribute to the Filipino novelty rock group that made waves in the 90’s.

RAK OF AEGIS
Written by Liza Magtoto
Directed by Maribel Legarda
Musical Direction & Arrangement by Myke Salomon

JAN. 31 - MAR. 9, 2014
PETA THEATER CENTER

Call TICKETWORLD and book your tickets now !

Mark Rothko’s “Red” by John Logan

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Mark Rothko’s “Red” by John Logan is the critically acclaimed production about the abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko who was commissioned, for what might have been the equivalent of the Sistine Chapel commission, to paint a series of murals for the cutting edge Seagram Building on Park Avenue.

But after completing the works, he mysteriously decides to keep the paintings and returns every penny of the advance. Years later, the artist donates the works to the Tate Gallery in London and on the very day it arrives at the gallery, he commits suicide.

The play introduces a fictitious assistant who engages Rothko in arguments and conversations that ultimately make us understand why Rothko might decide to withdraw his work from the commission.

Definitely not-a-miss !!!!!

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My Own Mann Productions, the newly-formed theater company of CHERIE GIL and Actors' Actors' Inc (AAI) proudly announces its debut offering for 2014 with “ FULL GALLOP ” a play about fashion doyenne Diana Vreeland.

Written by Mary Louise Wilson and Mark Hampton, FULL GALLOP focuses on the life of Diana Vreeland, who stood at the center of American style for five decades.

As editor of Harper's Bazaar and Vogue magazines, and as a member of the International Cafe Society, Diana chronicled the extraordinary people and events of her time.

FULL GALLOP is a portrait of this remarkable woman at a turning point in her life. Vreeland has just returned home to New York after four months in Europe—a trip she took after being fired from Vogue magazine. She throws an impromptu dinner party in the hope that a wealthy friend who is invited will bankroll her in starting a magazine of her own. Other friends, however, attempt to persuade her to take a job at the famed Metropolitan Museum of Art. In her distinctive style, once she decides in which direction her life will move, she goes at it "full gallop."

The Sixth Ani ng Dangal Awards Night at Resorts World Manila

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Ani ng Dangal or "Harvest of Honors" is a state recognition given by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts under the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines. It is an annual affair in the Philippines celebrated as a highlight of the Philippine Arts Festival. A tradition of recognizing Filipino excellence in the arts.

On February 2, 2014, all roads lead to the Ani Ng Dangal Awards Night at Resorts World Manila!

Ani Ng Dangal celebrates the achievements of Filipino artists who have been recognized elsewhere in the world. This year's roster includes Eugene Domingo, Alessandra De Rossi, Jed Madela, Merlie Alunan, Joel Torre among others. The complete list will be posted soon!

Though this is a free admission event, the public is invited to register and sign up for a seat via the online guest list to reserve a seat for the awards night. Performances will be with the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra and Maestro Gerard Salonga.

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To those planning to get an NBI clearance today, instead of battling it out patiently in a depressing queue, you might just want to wait a couple more days.

With the recent news about the terrible service that a lot of individuals had to endure when getting their NBI clearance, the government has finally come to its senses by offering a more convenient form of getting the much needed document especially during job application. The very slow processing resulting in the long queue of applicants were terribly disappointing. Many had to fall in line at the National Bureau of Investigation offices even earlier than 2 am just to be among the first people in line.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced in a press release dated January 23, 2014 that applicants for the NBI Clearance can now apply and fill out the complete form online.

According to the DOJ’s press release, NBI Clearance applicants can now apply and fill out the complete form at www.doj.gov.ph/nbi or www.nbi.gov.ph starting Friday, January 24, 2014. After the online registration, applicants may proceed directly to any of the 55 sites nationwide for payment and biometric enrollment for the release of the clearance.

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Admission is free to the 8th Spring Film Festival this January 24 to February 2, 2014 at the Shang CinePlex of the EDSA Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong brought to you by the Ateneo de Manila University Ricardo Leong Center for Chinese Studies, together with Confucius Institute and Credit Suisse, with the cooperation of Ateneo Celadon and Shangri-La Plaza.

The festival is organized every year to promote Chinese culture in the mainstream Philippine society, particularly among young Filipinos so that they may become bridges between the Philippines and China. This year’s festival features 8 movies that are close to Filipinos hearts.

The offerings for this year features eight outstanding moving tales which includes romantic comedy, family drama, historical action drama, suspense, romantic drama, and Parkour action films.

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“Smuggling has been going on since time immemorial and nobody really stopped it,” he said. “No amount of threats from government prosecution stopped smuggling. This has been going on and controlled by a cartel. If no one is willing to kill for the Filipinos–for the poor Filipino farmers–nothing will happen to this country.”

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte slams against Commission on Human Rights Chair Loretta Ann Rosales and Department of Justice Secretary Laila De Lima for scrutinizing him regarding his threat to "literally" kill the suspected smugglers. He says it's about time somebody takes a stronger stand against hardened criminals.

He is sending a strong resounding message to the two ladies to please just shut up! Wow!

How about you guys? Who do you think is right? Is it high time to bring out more than just an iron fist?

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The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) celebrates its 115th founding anniversary this week with the start of two (2) major infrastructure projects: the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 (MMS 3) project and the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 Rehabilitation.

“We are very happy to celebrate the DOTC’s anniversary with the start these major works. These are our gifts to the public,” said DOTC Secretary Joseph Emilio Aguinaldo Abaya.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the P 26.59 Billion MMS 3 project was held today, 22 January 2014. This project entails a 14.82-kilometer, mostly 6-lane elevated highway extension of the Skyway from Buendia, Makati to Balintawak, Quezon City.

Wazzup Pilipinas!

According to a Yahoo article, the Philippines ranks number one in the world for deaths caused by natural disasters. Last year, 2,360 people lost their lives in the Philippines due to natural disasters. It says that the Philippines is situated at the dead center of Typhoon Alley. Thus the typhoon Yolanda was really not so much surprising. The flooding was bound to happen, and yes, sadly, it did to our great disappointment.

The article also says that our country rests on the unstable “Ring of Fire” where volcanoes blast forth magma from the Earth’s core, and rides earthquake prone tectonic plates as they slip against one another. It’s the most dynamic location on the planet, bar none, positively terrifying if you think too much about it.

Scary indeed to learn that we might be experiencing more than just floods, but also something more dangerous than the Pinatubo volcano disaster. Earthquakes, landslides and fires have occurred already, and it is quite alarming that we are less proactive in our efforts to prevent a huge number of fatalities and property damage. There should be more dynamic movements to avoid the unfortunate staggering figures.

However, we really do not just have to look at nature's wrath to find places in the Philippines where there are impending tragedies that are just waiting to happen...and if only our authorities will look beyond their PDAFs or pork barrel funds and become more concerned with the small yet probable sources of disasters.

Below are my Top Twelve Most Dangerous Places in the Philippines.

Mabuhay Restop Launches Festival Series

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Mabuhay Restop recently launched exciting new shows featuring various regions of the country in partnership with Department of Tourism, Gawad Kalinga , National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Local Artists , CITEM, Department of Trade and Industry in promoting local products, talents and destinations.

Mabuhay Restop’s Mabuhay Festivals is where different Philippine regions will be celebrated every month through music, dance, food, visual arts, products, and tourist attractions. The first three (3) regions to be highlighted are Central Luzon, Eastern Visayas, and Davao region.

The evening started off with an introduction by Mabuhay Restop owner, Rose Cabrera, and a beautiful performance of “Kay Ganda ng Ating Musika ” sang in 7 Philippines languages – Tagalog, Hiligaynon, Cebuano, Bicolano, Ilocano, Chabacano and Maranao - by veteran performer Mitch Valdez.

The main preview of the evening was the Mabuhay Fiesta Show hosted by Thea Gloria and captures in 45-minutes the best of the Philippines – our festivals, arts, love of music and dance, tourist attractions, and our vibrant culture in general.

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The Palarong Panrehiyon of the NCR Palarong Pambansa 2014 opened up with several activities last January 20, 2014 at the Pinaglabanan Shrine located near the new San Juan City Government Center.

The Palarong Pambansa, dubbed as the "National Games, is an annual multi-sporting event involving student-athletes from seventeen (17) regions of the Philippines organized and governed by the Department of Education or DepEd.

Student-athletes from private and non-private schools from elementary and secondary levels are legitimately can joined the national event as long as they are qualified and they are regional champions.

The celebration started off with a parade at around 3 pm participated by several delegates including students, leaders and officials of the different schools from all NCR divisions including Pasig, Pateros, Taguig, Paranaque, Makati, Marikina, San Juan, Las Pinas, Caloocan, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Manila, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Pasay, Valenzuela, and Quezon City.

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Laguna was chosen as the venue of the Palarong Pambansa 2014. The Department of Education (DepEd) and Provincial Government of Laguna already signed an agreement to conduct this year's Palarong Pambansa.

Governor Emilio Ramon “ER” Ejercito Jr. of Laguna and Secretary of Education Armin Luistro signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which contains the duties and responsibilities of the Provincial Government of Laguna (PGL) and DepEd for running the Palarong Pambansa.

The MOU was signed at the DepEd Central Office in Pasig City last January 11, 2014. DepEd Secretary Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC, DepEd Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Atty. Tonisito M.C. Umali, and other DepEd representatives welcomed the delegation from Laguna composed of Governor Ejercito, his wife Pagsanjan Mayor Girlie “Maita” Ejercito; Provincial Administrator Atty. Leonardo M. Ragaza, Jr.; Office of the Governor’s Chief-of-Staff Carlos F. Dolendo; board members of Laguna; and PGL department heads.

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This year, Pinoy Atheist and The Agora will launch its new program/activity called Atheist Aware to be held at Ichill Theater Cafe on January 26, Sunday at 2 pm.. This is a once a month activity that will focus more on ideas relevant to the Filipino non-believers.

In 2006, Prof. Richard Dawkins has published a book that made a lot of noise about atheism. The God Delusion is a 2006 best-selling, non-fiction book by the English biologist and professorial fellow of New College, Oxford. Dawkins was also the former holder of the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford.

In The God Delusion, Dawkins contends that a supernatural creator almost certainly does not exist and that belief in a personal god qualifies as a delusion, which he defines as a persistent false belief held in the face of strong contradictory evidence. He is sympathetic to Robert Pirsig's statement in Lila that "when one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called "religion"

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Floy Quintos’ Break Away Antigone is based on Sophocles’ classic play, the production revisits the tragic story of Oedipus’ daughter, Antigone, who defies a King’s edict by burying a brother deemed an enemy of the State. It is a tale set in a city devastated by war, now under martial rule, and played out as a musical with songs that span different genres — Broadway, Alternative, Pop and Rock.

Eminent sportscaster and columnist Bill Velasco returns to the Ateneo stage after more than 25 years and joins the cast as Oedipus, who in Sophocles’ plays unknowingly marries his mother, Yocasta. His two sons, Eteokles and Polynikes, battle each other for the throne and in combat slay each other. Creon (Brian Sy; Tarek El Tayech) takes over as King.

Keen to impose law and order amidst the chaos of a civil war, Creon issues an edict that gives the loyal Eteokles an honorable burial while Polynikes, who sided with an opposing army, is left to rot on the battlefield. Antigone (Laura Cabochan, Opaline Santos), sister to the slain brothers, witness the funeral procession honoring Eteokles, agonizing not for the Theban hero but for Polynikes, the brother she passionately loves. Grief turns to thoughts of an escape, a break away from Thebes, but not before Antigone can bury Polynikes as is expected by custom. But Creon, Antigone’s uncle, has decreed that anyone who buries Polynikes will be sentenced to death.

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Widely recognized today as a cornerstone of the Filipino cultural identity, Ballet Philippines, the Phillippines' flagship company in ballet and contemporary dance, closes its successful 44th season, themed IllumiNATION, with an exceptional repertoire of breathtaking performances in The Art of Dance.

The highly anticipated season-ender presents a mixed repertoire of new and revived works from notable guest choreographers, showcasing Ballet Philippines’ acclaimed mastery of both classical and contemporary ballet. This will be shown at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati on February 14 to 16 and 21 to 23 at 3pm for the matinees and 8pm for the gala shows.

The Art of Dance takes on varied dance forms in a stunning display of technique, talent, contrast, and artistry, presenting two different shows—Day (matinee shows) and Night (evening shows). Essentially taking into consideration each program’s target audience, both shows offer completely different - yet equally-enthralling - experiences for its viewers.