Violinist Diomedes Saraza Jr., cellist Kim Yeonjin, conductor Darrell Ang team up in MSO concert

The Manila Symphony Orchestra's upcoming concert will see concertmaster Diomedes Saraza, Jr., Korean cellist Kim Yeonjin, and Grammy nominated conductor Darrell Ang team up at the Meralco Theater on November 16, 2019, 4:00 PM.

Billed as Pas de Deux, the concert will feature Johannes Brahms' Double Concerto in A minor, Op. 102 with Saraza, Jr. and Kim as the double soloists and also Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's ballet suite from Swan Lake, Op. 20.

Japanese ensemble SORA headlines PPO November concert

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra welcomes the SORA Ensemble from Japan for their upcoming concert this November 15, 2019, 8:00 PM at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo (CCP Main Theater). 

SORA Ensemble, composed of oboist Hiromasa Iwasaki, bassoonist Rei Ishiguro, violinist Kana Kobayashi, and cellist Keiichi Yamada, will be the soloists for Franz Joseph Haydn's Sinfonia Concertante in B-flat major, Op. 84 Hob. I/105. Other pieces to be performed at the concert include Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9 in E-flat major Op. 70 and Arturo Márquez' Danzón No. 7 and Danzón No. 8. Music Director/Principal Conductor Yoshikazu Fukumura will lead the PPO in this performance.

The SORA Ensemble was formed by Hiromasa Iwasaki, the principal oboist of the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra and young musicians in 2008. Along with the motto Music at Anytime, Anywhere, they have performed more than a hundred concerts annually to cities, towns and villages in Hokkaido and other parts of Japan, to bring to people the energetic live performances of chamber music, symphony and other ensemble music. Their first album SORA with Hokkaido was released in 2018 commemorating the group’s 10th Anniversary.

Hungarian Film Festival returns to the Shang

Bet on horses and more as the Embassy of Hungary, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and the Shangri-La Plaza present the 3rd Hungarian Film Festival happening on November 14-17, 2019 at the Shang's Red Carpet.

Leading the selection of films is Kincsem - Bet on Revenge, Hungary's most expensive local film production to date and the biggest box-office hit in the past decade. This film is based on the true story of the legendary racehorse Kincsem who held the longest streak of any racing horse in history. 

Other films in the lineup include the romantic drama Moscow Square/Moszkva tér, the adventure romcom Brazils/Brazilok, the true to life drama Genesis/Genezis, and the animated feature Tales from the Lakeside/Lengemesék.

Hungarian Embassy's Deputy Head of Mission
Dávid Ambrus

Admission to the films are for free on a first come, first served basis. Films will be shown in their original language with English subtitles with the exception of Tales from the Lakeside which will be dubbed in English.

Here are the selection of films lined up for the 3rd Hungarian Film Festival.

Kincsem - Bet on Revenge

Director: Gábor Herendi

Cast: Ervin Nagy, Andrea Petrik, Tibor Gáspár, József Gyabronka, Tamás Keresztes, Fekete Tibor, Péter Scherer, Zoltán Rátóti, Lehel Kovács, Zalán Makranczi, Mónika Balsai, Kati Lázár, Zoltán Seress, Zoltán Schneider, János Papp, Csaba Krisztik

The new owner of a brilliant race horse finds love while carrying out his revenge on the man who murdered his father.

Moscow Square/Moszkva tér

Director: Ferenc Török

Cast: Zsolt Kovács, Erzsi Pápai, Gábor Karalyos, Ilona Béres, Eszter Balla, András Réthelyi, Simon Szabó, Bence Jávor, Imre Csuja, Vilmos Csatlós

April 27th, 1989. It is Petya's 18th birthday and his friends gather in Budapest's Moscow Square to pop champagne and begin lengthy celebrations. May Day sees them swimming in the famous Hotel Gellert and breakfasting on Liberty Bridge, as the political clouds begin to lift and it seems youth and the country face a brave new future...

Brazils/Brazilok

Director: Csaba M. Kiss, Gábor Rohonyi

Cast: Erik Lakatos, Barnabás Bergendi, Dániel Viktor Nagy, Béla Dóra, Csaba Lakatos, Renátó Lakatos, Krisztofer Pászik, Franciska Farkas, Norbert Nagy, Gergely Kaszás, Blanka Mészáros

The mayor of the small village of Acsa, urged by the new young priest of the village, announces that this year the gypsy football team called Brazils can also take part in the football championship of the village; and this year, thanks to a Brazilian millionaire originally from Acsa, the winning team will be invited to Rio de Janeiro.

Genesis/Genezis

Director: Árpád Bogdán

Cast: Milán Csordás, Anna Marie Cseh, Eniko Anna Illesi, Lídia Danis, Zsolt Kovács, Levente Molnár, Tamás Ravasz, István Szilvási, Szofi Berki, Roland Tzafetás

The three stories within Genesis are rooted in the biblical notion of family: a woman in her late thirties rediscovers the faith she lost as a child; a mother goes to extreme lengths to ensure that her child is saved from the fate that she was forced to endure; a Roma boy's family are killed, and the perfect world of his childhood is destroyed. All three stories are based on real events that took place in Hungary: the Roma murders. The three protagonists are one way or another affected by these events, which change their lives fundamentally.

Tales from the Lakeside/Lengemesék

Director: Zsolt Pálfi

The green Verdies are the tiny, but brave guardians of the lakeside. The young Verdies only become guardians when their hair turns brown. Until then, however, life is boring. The youngsters with green hair are not allowed to fly on warblers, not allowed to row alone, and they're not allowed to ride wild frogs at the rodeo. Willy Whistle's big dream is to become a guardian, but his curiosity always gets him into trouble. However, the whole lake becomes at risk when the enemies of the lakeside, the Grimps and the swans, enter into alliance. The guardians are helpless, but Willy comes up with a daring plan in order to save his home and his trapped friend, Jeremiah Jump. Luckily he is not alone, because Grandpa, the water snakes and the frogs also come to his aid.

Here is the screening schedule for the 3rd Hungarian Film Festival.

November 14, 2019
3:20 PM Brazils/Brazilok
5:30 PM Moscow Square/Moszkva tér
7:30 PM Genesis/Genezis

November 15, 2019
2:50 PM Genesis/Genezis
5:20 PM Brazils/Brazilok
7:30 PM Kincsem - Bet on Revenge

November 16, 2019
2:50 PM Tales from the Lakeside/Lengemesék
5:20 PM Kincsem - Bet on Revenge
7:30 PM Brazils/Brazilok

November 17, 2019
2:50 PM Tales from the Lakeside/Lengemesék
5:00 PM Genesis/Genezis
7:30 PM Moscow Square/Moszkva tér

The 3rd Hungarian Film Festival is presented by the Embassy of Hungary, Film Development Council of the Philippines, and the Shangri-La Plaza Mall.

Love, magic and mischief in Ballet Philippines' A Midsummer Night's Dream

The cast of A Midsummer Night's Dream

Back in early 2013, I saw the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra perform Felix Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream Suite at one of their season concerts and it made me regret right away missing Ballet Philippines' adaptation of that William Shakespeare play that the company staged just the month before.

It didn't help that BP continued to present in subsequent years an excerpt from this Carlo Pacis choreographed ballet set to the Nocturne which is my favorite piece from the suite. This left me wondering for years where this excerpt fits with the rest of the ballet. And to remind me further of what I've missed was Tanghalang Pilipino's 2016 production of Panaginip sa Isang Gabi ng Gitnang Tag-Araw, a Filipino translation of the play.

Denise Parungao and Dan Dayo

Six years later, I finally saw the whole picture as Pacis' A Midsummer Night's Dream made a successful comeback to the Cultural Center of the Philippines' stage as the second offering of Ballet Philippines' 50th Gold Anniversary Season.

The ballet adaptation is straightforward retelling of Shakespeare's comedy of the intertwined stories of the faerie king Oberon and queen Titania, the Athenian lovers Lysander and Hermia, Demetrius and Helena, the royals Duke Theseus of Athens and Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons, and lastly, a group of ragtag band of actors led by Quince.

AL Abraham, Sarah Alejandro, Jemima Reyes, and Earl John Arisola
lead the dancing at the Wedding

The neoclassical choreography by Pacis clearly conveyed the story and established the characters spot on. The otherworldliness of Titania (Denise Parungao and Katrene San Miguel) and Oberon (portrayed by Ronelson Yadao and Lester Reguindin) was shown by having them carried by the corps of faeries and faerie men giving them the illusion of weightlessness.

The boundless energy of Puck (Victor Maguad and Dan Dayo) with his multitude of tricks contributed to his impish nature. The personification of Love-In-Idleness/Flower (Gia Gequinto and Jemima Reyes) gave Puck not just a dancing partner but also worthy accomplice in spreading his mischief.

There was a sense of being grounded with the four Athenian lovers, Hermia (Jemima Reyes and Monica Gana), Lysander (Earl John Arisola), Helena (Sarah Alejandro and Jessa Tangalin), and Demetrius (AL Abraham and Eugene Obille) whose lives and eventual fates were at the mercy of the capricious supernatural beings. How these pair of lovers willingly/unwillingly came into contact with each other through the course of the ballet was a foil to the tension and disconnect between Titania and Oberon.

The cast of A Midsummer Night's Dream

While brief, the spotlight on the Rustics composed of Bottom/Pyramus (Dan Dayo and Emmanuelle Guillermo), Starveling/Wall (John Ababon/Mark Balucay, Quince/Director (Ace Polias), Snug/Lion (Emmanuelle Guillermo and Luigie Barrera), Flute/Thisbe (Erl Sorilla and Bonifacio Guerrero), and Snout/Moonshine (Earvin Guillermo) was a comedic highlight.

With all the spotlight on the other characters, the pair that was left with the short end of the stick for me in characterization was that of Queen Hippolyta (Stephanie Santiago and Denise Parungao) and Duke Theseus (Eugene Obille and Ronelson Yadao). The pair somehow made up for their lack of characterization by being part of the intricately choreographed group wedding scene.

Post show meet and greet with the cast

The costumes by Eric Pineda with additional design by Ricardo Eric Cruz gave the faeries tights with a single vivid color (blue for Oberon and pink for Titania) with minimal detail/accessories. This was supported by the imposing stylized tree set occupying a huge chunk of the set. Instead of going all traditional in how faeries and a mystical forest are depicted, this production went with a distinctly modern touch. My only gripe was when the some of the upper branches of the tree went down to form some sort of panels at the wedding scene, the stage got a bit too cramped with all the dancers doing the intricate choreography.

Finally, I was able to see the epilogue with the Nocturne music with its proper context. I appreciate how Oberon and Titania now wore nude tights with hints of green foliage detail as if they finally shed their brightly colored tights as well as their egos. Their movements became softer and their points of contact more intimate. A growth within the pair upon realizing what they've done out of pettiness and with it, the ballet ended with Puck offering a final thought on whether all had been a dream.

Souvenir programs and a sprout pencil giveaway

The biggest surprise for me in this ballet was hearing more than just the incidental music that Mendelssohn composed. Also used were music from what I believe belonged to his string symphonies. Which ones, I couldn't tell. But the biggest music highlight for me was the clever use of the 2nd and 3rd movements of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 in key scenes of the ballet. There was a time when I got sick and tired of this piece but because of the ballet and seeing the music in a different light, I cannot wait to see a live performance of this concerto once again.

RAd's Playlist | Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream

Relive the ballet with Felix Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream (and more) recorded by Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the baton of James Levine.