LANAO WINS

Land of Beauty and Bounty from Lanao del Norte dances up a storm at the New Imus road during the Sinulog 2016 Grand Parade. (CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)

Placer wins for the 3rd time in Sinulog-based category

Persistence paid off for Lanao del Norte as their “Land of Beauty and Bounty” won the Free Interpretation Category of the Sinulog 2016 Grand Parade Showdown yesterday.

The board of judges for the Free Interpretation category headed by Nestor Jardin were impressed by the choreography and energy shown by the Lanao del Norte contingent which performed a “modernized version” of the Darangen, a Maranao epic story depicting two warring groups that were eventually reconnected by “Bai-a-Labi” who succeeded in bringing lasting peace.

The Sinulog-Based category was won for the third time by the Kulturang Placereño of the Masbate Dance Company in Placer, who won the competition last year and in 2014.

In the Street Dancing Category, Abuyog Leyte’s Tribu Buyoganon dethroned defending champion Lumad Basaknon of Cebu City which ended up in fifth place.
Lanao, Placer and Abuyog will each receive P1 million, for topping their respective categories, during this afternoon’s awarding ceremony at the Cebu City Sports Center.

All three contingents will deliver repeat performances.

The Kulturang Placereno from Masbate performs at the Cebu City Sports Center. (CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)

Jardin, past president of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), said Lanao del Norte’s concept was timely.

“It’s about peace among followers of various religions which I think is very timely. Second, the way the dancers performed was very laudable. They were quite energetic and they sustained their energy from beginning to end,” he said.

Jardin said Lanao del Norte’s production design was “exemplary” including their costume, props and the way their choreography synchronized with their props.

“The way the sequences have been designed by the choreographer, I think, is one of the factors that made them win,” he added.

Last year’s champion, the Tribu Buyoganon of Abuyog Leyte, landed in third place. Tribu Katbalaugan of Catbalogan City, Samar, which joined the Sinulog for thesecond time this year, won second place —  an improvement from their fourth place finish last year during their debut performance.
Jardin said Tribu Buyoganon’s concept of their Buyogan Festival was just similar to the one they did last year.

“They did well, except that the two other groups, we felt, were better than them. They didn’t build on their choreography to make it more exciting and more different. That’s the truth,” he said.

It’s the first time that Lanao del Norte got the top prize in the Sinulog despite frequently joining.

They last placed fifth in 2013 and fourth place in 2010 and 2009.

Aside from the P1 million, the group will also receive P100,000 for winning first place in the Best in Musicality and another P100,000 for winning Best in Costume for the Free Interpretation Category.

Other winners in the category are Tribu Himag-Ulaw (4th Place) and Lumad Basakanon (5th Place).

Kulturang Placereno also won the Best in Costume prize for the Sinulog-Based category (P100,000) and 2nd Place for Best in Musicality (P50,000).

“Placer stood out for their total production, the artistry, creativity and level of performance was high. The choreography went well and the highlights were placed in the right places,” said Josefina Guillen, chairman of the Board of Judges for the Sinulog-Based Category.

Guillen is currently the head of the National Committee on Dance of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).

The group depicted several areas as backdrop during their dance including the Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino’s Pilgrim Center, a “peryahan” or carnival area. They showed a mother looking for her missing son.

She saw a boy, dressed in red depicting the Sto. Niño, who showed her where her son was and they were reunited.

The mother then gave thanks to Senyor Sto. Niño for helping her.

Other winners for the category are Carcar City Division (2nd Place), Tangub City’s Sinanduloy Cultural Troupe (3rd Place), Pundok sa Kabataang Mananayaw sa Danao City (4th Place) and Municipality of Tuburan (5th Place).

Both Jardin and Guillen though congratulated all contingents for showing better performances compared to last year.

“The overall observation was that the quality of the performances and dances was much higher this year. There was a lot of improvement already,” Jardin said.

Suspended Mayor Michael Rama, who is also the chairman of the Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI), said he feels “great pride” with the choreographers this year.
SFI executive director Ricky Ballesteros also commended Lanao for putting a much better concept this year and not failing to join even if they don’t win the top prizes.

But he expressed disappointment over the Lumad Basakanon which landed in fifth place for the Free Interpretation Category and fifth place for the Street Dancing Category, a championship title they held for the past two years.

“Their performance this year is kinda weak. They lost their spunk. I thought they won’t get in the top 5. I was also surprised with their street dancing. I observed they had new dancers,” Ballesteros said.

About 129 contingents, including 32 dancing contingents, participated in this year’s Sinulog 2016 Grand Parade Showdown.

A grand finale centering on the coming 51st International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) capped off yesterday’s Mega Sinulog 2016 followed by a grand fireworks display.

Binibining Pilipinas Supranational and Reyna ng Aliwan 2011 Rogelie Catacutan, a Cebuana, led almost a thousand dancers who performed different dances of different nations.
Catacutan was surrounded by several flags representing the different countries participating in the international event.