Timeless Theatre at 33

CEBU, Philippines - Three, regarded as the eternal number, reflects double at 33. Auspiciously, the IPAG celebrates life’s unending streams of drama, music, dance, literature, and the space arts with its 33rd Theatre Season. And what better way to celebrate ‘eternity’ in the performing arts than present multi-media productions inspired by the classics.

IPAG’s latest, Suhi, reshapes the Greek classic Oedipus Rex into our local postmodern settings. “The gods have decided,” so the play seems to say — performed in dialogue, dance, and music plus stunning visuals. (Suhi received good marks when the play’s first drafts were introduced in try-outs last March 2010.)

Suhi opens its run Sept. 8 at the MSU-IIT Mini Theatre before its opening road show at the Xavier University in Cagayan de Oro City on Sept. 21.

In the 2nd school semester, IPAG remounts Sarimanok, the award-winning musical of Steven Patrick C. Fernandez, precursor of the Guild’s signature dance theatre. The national tours of Sarimanok catapulted IPAG to national prominence in the 1980s. Inspired by the M’ranao symbol of wealth and prestige, the dance-musical re-shapes to engage our 21st century audiences.

Sarimanok will have playdates in February 2011.

IPAG’s “classic” Tales From Mindanao and Tatlo sa Isa will continue to enthrall large audiences with these favorites’ national tours that start in August. An added repertoire in the sked is SugaTula, the acclaimed transcreation of the poems of Philippine South’s celebrated writers which opens its road shows at the Capitol University in Cagayan de Oro in September 30.

Rounding up this “eternal” cycle of timeless theatre for the 33rd Season are workshops in contemporary dance, directing for the stage, and playwriting, besides lectures in theatre and the Humanities that ensure the theatre and audience development programs of the Guild. PR