The festival queen of Brgy. Babag performs with her contingent during the Garbo sa Lapu-Lapu Festival 2023. | CDN FILE PHOTO
CEBU CITY, Philippines — For the first time, Lapu-Lapu City will be joining this year’s Pasigabro sa Sugbo as one of the competing contingents.
Their entry is contingent no. 49 in Sunday’s street dancing competition and ritual showdown.
Choreographer Neil Tan said their preparations are already in full swing despite the very limited time for their rehearsals.
READ: The Festival of Festivals: What is Pasigarbo sa Sugbo?
Tan told CDN Digital in a phone interview that they only had a month to practice. They started to rehearse with their performers on the second week of July.
“Kuwang kaayo ang among mga dancers and propsmen tungod kay late na kaayo ang notice sa pag-join sa Lapu-Lapu City but we were able to hire dancers, mga newbies gud ni sila but gi-train ni sila sa akoang mga dance masters,” Tan said.
READ: Pasigarbo sa Sugbo 2024: What to expect this year
They also needed a bigger venue to practice. Fortunately, Mayor Junard Chan allowed them to use the Hoops Dome for their rehearsals.
Also, Tan said that they had to make last minute adjustments to their street dancing entry considering the minimal space that they will dance on as they traverse Osmeña Boulevard because of the ongoing implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project.
READ: Pasigarbo sa Sugbo through the years: The venues
“Nag change napod mi. From wide kaayo, ni go into four lines nalang gyud mi para masigo mi [sa dan],” Tan said.
Best performance
But despite the time constraint and the other challenges that they had to hurdle, Tan said that they are committed to give their best performance on Sunday and give pride to their city.
READ: Cebu City to close some roads on Aug. 25 for Pasigarbo sa Sugbo
“Among gi-make sure nga nindot among ma-present despite sa ka short nga notice nga pag join sa Lapu-Lapu City,” he said.
Tan said their performers will rehearse at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) stage on August 22. They will take a coaster to the venue while their props will be transported here on a truck.
On Monday, Lapu-Lapu City Tourism Office in-charge Garry Lao also shared some behind-the-scene photos that he took when they filmed the Pasigarbo video introduction of Mayor Chan at the Mactan Cebu International Airport.
Tan said that the video introduction was supposed to be a “surprise.” Nonetheless, he gave the assurance that their “Garbo sa Lapu-Lapu Festival” entry is something that Pasigabro spectators will look forward to.