Around 50 choreographers participating in the upcoming MassKara Festival street and arena dance competitions recently joined a two-day creative workshop at the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC).

The workshop was run by Raymund Marcaida, a protégé of Ligaya Fernando-Amilbangsa, a Ramon Magsaysay Award recipient, known for her expertise in Pangalay, coined the “fingernail” dance, a custom of the ethic Tausūg people, who reside in areas across the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
With the theme of the festival dubbed “Bacolod: City of Southeast Asia,” celebrating the city’s participation in Philippines chairing the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) this year, Marcaida’s expertise may well be needed as he himself also studied in Indonesia and learned about their local culture and traditional dances.
Meanwhile, streetdance committee chair Rudy Reveche introduced the participants to the basics of Asian dance choreography.
The competitions are scheduled to take place from October 21 to 22./WDJ