Sixteen Filipino members of the International Ladies’ Potluck Group hosted a special event to showcase their culture at the Al Jazi Compound in West Bay.
Around 150 members and guests were enthralled by the women with their Singkil dance. Mel Anderson played the Royal Princess and Lovielyn Fjallstrom, Ethel Lumba, Ruth Sabry, Merry Jo Na, Jennifer Malinao and Jane Daly played the part of helpers in the dance of royalty. To the rhythmic clapping of Bamboo poles, the dancers wove expertly through crisscrossed bamboos, dressed in elegant costumes waving great big fans and scarves, the men flipping brightly coloured handkerchiefs right and left. The dancers maintained a dignified pose, dancing at a slow pace and soon progressed to a faster tempo. Every move in the dance is improvised and executed according to the mood and skill of the dancers.
The ladies later performed the Carinosa dance. The dance is accompanied by the use of a fan and/or handkerchief in a playful way. The outfits worn by the women are called Maria Clara and for men it is Barong Tagalog - one of the traditional dresses in the Philippines. For this event the dancers wore a dress called Filipina Mestiza Dress.
After that came the Tinikling dance, one of the most popular traditional Philippine dance, performed by Ethel Lumba and Lovielyn Fjallstrom. The dance originated in Leyte among the Visayan Islands in the central Philippines. The dance was inspired by the movement of the Tikling birds, as they walk between grass stems, run over tree branches or dodge bamboo traps set by rice farmers. Dancers imitate the Tikling bird’s grace and speed by skillfully maneuvering between large bamboo poles. This involves two people beating, tapping, and sliding bamboo poles on the ground and against each other in coordination with one or more dancers who step over and in between the poles during the dance. The bamboo is also used as a percussive instrument as it is banged against the ground and against each other in a pattern. The bamboo has to be closed hard enough to make a sound, and the dancers must be quick enough not to get their foot caught. The banging of the bamboo becomes faster and harder as the dance progresses. The sound of the clashing bamboo and the quickness of feet demonstrated by the dancers wowed the crowd.
Mel Anderson was the dance choreographer for the whole evening.
Presenter Nelida Bolton gave a brief presentation about culture and tradition of the Philippines.
Orland Mendoza sang a Filipino song “Beautiful Girl”, whie Janno Aziz from Music House played “Ngayon at Kailan Man ( Now and Whenever) on violin.
Filipino Ladies, wearing traditional dresses from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, also presented a mini fashion show. Main highlight of the show was Jane Daly’s intricate Filipiniana dress made of corn husks, abaca twines and bamboo.
The members from other countries were very impressed with the performance of the ladies. Madiha Szewc from France said: “I found the traditional dances being performed by members is very interesting especially the Tinikling, so fun and enjoyable to see with their dances moves on the bamboo.”
“Thoroughly enjoy the traditional performances which portrayed the harmony and cultural richness of the Philippines. What a great effort and professionally choreographed and graciously danced,” Aishah Moors Ali from Malaysia added.
The sponsors for the event were BK Gulf, Torch Hotel, Mercure Grand Hotel, Radisson Blu, Crowne Plaza, Sushi Minto, Snap TV, Belizza Salon, Music House, Sawasdee Spa, 4U, Qatar International Nursery, Caramel, Tavola and Hyundai Construction.
The Peninsula
