MANILA, PHILIPPINES – In celebration of National Heritage Month, Paco Park hosts “Mayo, Bisperas ng Liwanag”, a musical adaptation in Filipino of National Artist Nick Joaquin’s beloved short story, “May Day Eve”. Scheduled on 24 May 2024 (Friday), the show starts at 6:00 PM at the St. Pancratius Chapel in Paco Park.
The adaptation features the libretto of National Artist Fides Cuyugan-Asensio and music by Professor Rey T. Paguio. The production, directed by Alegria Ferrer, a multi-award-winning performer and a current faculty member of the University of the Philippines College of Music, brings forth, according to Ferrer, “the neo-romantic composition of Paguio and the lyricism of Cuyugan-Asensio.” It is a production that tells the story of romantic love and longing, but also of dedicated nationalism, as Ferrer details the contrast between the two main characters, Badong and Agueda, and the motivations that spur them to emotion and action. With thematic elements of magical realism being prominent in Nick Joaquin’s original story of “May Day Eve,” Ferrer states that “Magical realism in my production of Mayo, Bisperas ng Liwanag is all in the mind. What can be more magical than the images from one’s mind?” She further highlights the invitation or challenge of the musical, and how it would “ask the audience to have a critical mind and open acceptance,” according to Ferrer, given her own interpretation and direction of the piece.
Join us this 24 May 2024 for an unforgettable evening at Paco Park, as we celebrate the magic of “Paco Park Presents: Mayo, Bisperas ng Liwanag.” Brought to you by the Department of Tourism and National Parks Development Committee, in cooperation with SX Manila, admission is free and open to the public.
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Paco Park Presents is one of the longest running programs of the agency and a recipient of the Catholic Mass Media Hall of Fame Award for Best Cultural Program in 1988, along with Concert at the Park. The musical soiree was born on 29 February 1980, from the suggestion of Christoph Jessen – the then press and cultural attache of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany. His vision is to have an exchange program of artists and ideas that would promote the bonds between the Filipino and German people.