The gala night was graced by ambassadors, highly-placed politicians, wives of congressmen, members of the Asia-Pacific Friendship Society and friends of the Philippines. Among those who attended the premiere showing were guests of honor Prince and Princess Akishino. The presence of former Japanese Prime Minister Tsutomu Hata, Special Representative of the Democratic Party of Japan, Congressman Mikio Shimoji, Ambassador and Madame Yoshio Karita, the grandmaster of ceremonies, Mr. and Mrs. Nobutaka Odano, the chief protocol of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. and Mrs. Nobutoshi Akao of the ASEAN Center, Mr. and Mrs. Hiroaki Fujii of the Japan Foundation, and Mr. Ryoki Sugita, chairman and executive officer of Nihon Keizai Shinbun, Japan’s largest business publication, lent prominence to the event.
Representatives of sponsoring companies and organizations also came. Fuji Xerox chairman Yotaro Kobayashi and his wife, Moriji Matsuda and Yuji Mikoshiba of Metrobank and Henry So-Uy, David Lim and Bong Velasquez of Philippine Airlines were there as well.
Members of the diplomatic and religious sectors who attended the much-applauded performance were Paraguayan Ambassador to Japan Miguel Solano Lopez Casco, Apostolic Nuncio Ambrose de Paoli, Cardinal Seiichi Shirayanagi, Monsignor Andrew Vissanu Thanya Anan, Akie Age, wife of Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe and Tessie Abe of the Imperial Household Agency.
The opera was a project undertaken by the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo in line with the celebration of the ASEAN-Japan Exchange Year 2003 and the centenary of Japanese migration to the Philippines. The opera is based on the life of Lord Ukon Takayama, a Japanese Christian who was sent into exile to Manila by the Tokugawa shogunate in 1614. By the 17th century, the shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa had unified the feudal states of Japan using aggressive military power. For refusing to abandon his Christian faith, Ukon Takayama was banished from his territory. He chose to give up his feudal lordship in favor of the life of a Christian exile in Manila. He dreamt of dying as a martyr in his homeland. Unfortunately, he died in Manila 50 days after his arrival.
The opera was produced by Edward Ishita, who is Filipino-Japanese. The music was composed by Fr. Manuel Maramba, a Benedictine monk and a faculty of the University of Sto. Tomas Conservatory of Music.
In his message, Ambassador Siazon lauded the joint project as a fine blending of Filipino and Japanese artistic talents, and a "glimpse of the unlimited possibilities for closer cooperation between the two countries, inspired by the common belief of people-to-people, person-to-person and heart-to-heart collaboration."
During his visit to Manila in January 2002, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi referred to Ukon Takayama as one whom both the Filipinos and Japanese can relate to.
From Japan, the cast travels to the Philippines for another series of shows in Manila, Davao and Baguio – August 25 at the Davao City CAP Auditorium, August 27 at the University of the Philippines Auditorium, August 29-31 at the Philamlife Theater and September 2 at the Saint Louis University Auditorium.
Certainly, the opera is a must-see for all Filipinos who have pride in their culture, history and country!