Toronto, Ontario
Never Forget: People Power Revisited
Carlos Bulosan Theatre and Pleiades Theatre revisits the play, PEOPLE POWER that commemorated the EDSA1 revolution and reflects on the ousted dictator’s son return to power 36 years later. Includes a panel discussion and art exhibit. October 25, 26, 27 at the Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace. Doors open 7:30pm. Performance begins 8pm.
TORONTO, ON – Carlos Bulosan Theatre (CBT), co-producing with Pleiades Theatre at Theatre Passe Muraille returns a pivotal original work to the stage with a reading of People Power this October 25th-27th, 2022. The play which premiered in 2006 was a commemoration and celebration of the events of EDSA1, also known as the People Power revolution in 1986 that ended the Marcos dictatorship, martial law and saw the restoration of democratic institutions after 13 years of totalitarian rule in the Philippines.
36 years later, in May 2022, the deposed dictator’s son, Bong Bong Marcos was elected by an overwhelming majority as the 17th President of the Republic, despite initial strong showings from the favoured candidate, former Vice-President Leni Robredo. “There was disbelief and disappointment among many in our community,” says Leon Aureus, Artistic Producer at CBT. “It felt like an alternate reality when Marcos ultimately won. We were questioning what made people forget all that history and that struggle for democracy. How does someone, whose family is still being investigated for stealing billions of pesos from the Philippines, get elected and become president?”
“My co-creators in the CBT People Power Collective (Rose Cortez, Nicco Lorenzo Garcia, Christine Mangosing,Nadine Villasin) – also the original performers along with the original director (Nina Lee Aquino), and I are all returning to Theatre Passe Muraille where the play was originally incubated and performed. We want to put the events of People Power back in the conversation,” says Aureus referring to an alt-history and misinformation that helped rewrite Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos’ legacy and strengthened the Marcos campaign. To reflect on if People Power was a fleeting hope and the question of how this could happen, community leaders will host talkbacks after the staged reading and CBT will preview new work by the next generation of theatre artists and display work by local Filipinx-Canadian visual artists at Theatre Passe Muraille over the three day event.
Co-produced with Pleiades Theatre, the reading is also part of PERSPECTIVES, POWER, and PRIVILEGE: A series of staged readings celebrating Pleiades Theatre’s 25 year history & its future.
Tickets for performances running October 25, 26, 27, 2022 are available at 416-504-7529 or online at https://ca.patronbase.com/_TheatrePasseMuraille/Productions
About Carlos Bulosan Theatre: Carlos Bulosan Theatre (CBT) has helped tell Filipinx-Canadian stories for forty years and counting, beginning in 1982. With roots in community activism, grassroots organization, education and advocacy, Carlos Bulosan Theatre continues to work hard to help Filipinx-Canadians realize their potential as artists and storytellers in the wide Filipinx diaspora and especially for Filipinx-Canadians who call Toronto home. CBT also strives to build an audience, a community to help support these artists and stories that are (y)our artists and stories.
About Pleiades: Whether as translations, adaptations, or original works, Pleiades Theatre explores great plays that raise the curtain on some of the rich cultures that make up Canada today. Everything at Pleiades is about cultural encounters and bridging divides. In addition to productions, Pleiades Theatre has a history of multilingual youth outreach programs, publicly funded ESL courses, and continued mentorships for theatre professionals. Address: S30-401 Richmond Street West, Toronto, ON M5V 3A8
About Theatre Passe Muraille: Founded in 1968, TPM is Canada’s original alternative theatre company, currently developing and producing new Canadian plays. TPM is striving to articulate a distinctly Canadian voice that reflects the complexity of our intercultural society. TPM believes there should be a more diverse representation of artists, audience members, and stories in our theatre. TPM aspires to be a leader locally, nationally and internationally in establishing, promoting and embracing collaborative and inclusive theatre practices. TPM does this so that they can support and ignite the voices of unique artists, communities and audiences. Address: 16 Ryerson Avenue Toronto, ON, M5T 2P3.
Carlos Bulosan Theatre
SOCKY PITARGUE (Self Portrait) // Contributing Artist Statement:
“How ironic that the paintings I chose for Never Forget: People Power Revisited are those that show exactly why we forget – our selective memory and our deep threshold for shame, our apathy in the face of historical revisionism and massive disinformation, a belief system that glorifies resilience over resistance. Fortunately, what people forget, art remembers.”
Mga kababayan, we invite you to join us this October 25th-27th for a reading of People Power that also features an art exhibit of local Filipinx artists and a panel discussion of local leaders following the performance.
Tickets are on a sliding scale of $5, $10, $20 based on what you can afford and are now on sale via the Theatre Passe Muraille Box Office at 416-504-7529 or click the link in our bio.
Doors open 7:30pm. Performance begins 8pm.
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