Mindanao's Indigenous Bearers of Cultural Heritage Perform in New York

On Friday, 14 October 2022, in commemoration of Filipino-American History Month, master artists and tradition bearers of the Maguindanao, Meranao, Taosug, and Tboli tribes, who traveled from the Philippines, showed a preview of the ritual dances and chanted epics of Mindanao at the Philippine Consulate General in New York, as a prelude to the series of performances, entitled “Posaka: Revisiting Mindanao Through its Master Artists and Cultural Tradition Bearers.” (Photo by Tanya Faye O. Ramiro).

In commemoration of Filipino-American History Month, the Philippine Consulate General in New York and Sentro Rizal New York, in collaboration with the nonprofit dance theater company, Kinding Sindaw Heritage Foundation, Inc., and with the support of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, showcased a distinct “Posaka” (Sanskrit for “Heirloom”) of the Filipino people – the ritual dances and chanted epics of Mindanao – through a series of performances by master artists and tradition bearers of the Maguindanao, Meranao, Taosug, and Tboli tribes.

(Photo by Troi Santos)

Entitled “Posaka: Revisiting Mindanao Through its Master Artists and Cultural Tradition Bearers,” the program commenced with a Meet-and-Greet on Friday, 14 October 2022 at the Philippine Center, and culminated in back-to-back performances at the La Mama Experimental Theatre Club in downtown Manhattan from 20 to 23 October 2022.

Master artists and tradition bearers Lyn Buti, Leonorah Grande, Airia Askalani Obeso, and Datu Faisal Monal, who traveled all the way from the Philippines, demonstrated the beauty of the culture and arts of Mindanao through their music and dance. A live kulintang ensemble, including various drums and gongs, accompanied each presentation. The program was also an opportunity to feature the vibrant fabrics and unique weaving patterns of Mindanao as performers proudly donned their costumes.

“This is indeed an inheritance not only of Mindanao, but of the entire Filipino nation, a cultural treasure which we all have the intergenerational responsibility to preserve and promote,” Vice Consul Tanya Faye O. Ramiro said in her welcome remarks during the Meet-and-Greet.

Consul General Elmer G. Cato graced the last night of the gala, and said that there is much more to learn about our Muslim Mindanao heritage (Photo by Troi Santos).

Consul General Elmer G. Cato, during the last gala night of Posaka, thanked the founder of Kinding Sindaw, Ms. Potrirankamanis Queano Nur, for serving as artistic director and choreographer of Posaka. He also emphasized to the audience the need to have a better appreciation of the heritage of Mindanao, which is part and parcel of our Filipino identity.

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