The Philippine American League hosted “Once Upon A Bayanihan” in the Academy Hall Auditorium on Saturday, April 18. This fairy tale–themed event consisted of a banquet of homemade Filipino cuisine and a show starring various members of PAL.
The League was fortunate enough to have a large turnout that evening; however, this also caused some grief for the organizers. “We got a lot more people than we originally were expecting,” President Chris Quinto ’10 said. “[It] led to a few problems with food quantity and cutlery quantity.” Extra seating had to be brought out, and if you didn’t manage to be first in line for the buffet, a decent selection of food or drink wasn’t guaranteed.
Food was served before the show, treating guests to traditional Filipino cuisine such as chicken adobo, lumpia, and vegetable pancit. There were also more familiar dishes such as paella, barbecue chicken, and white rice. The selection wasn’t great for vegetarians and those who aren’t fond of spicy food, but the chicken adobo and paella were particularly appetizing and flavorful. Dessert was served during the intermission, but ran out quickly; the fruit salad was a favorite among those lucky enough to be at the head of the line.
After dinner and the singing of the Filipino and American national anthems, the curtain opened to reveal a child (Caitlin Tam ’11) who can’t sleep or find anything worth watching on TV. Her mother (Leilani Cruz ’11) enters the stage to tell her a bedtime story—but not your typical bedtime story. The result, “Once Upon A Bayanihan,” is a conglomeration of “Little Red Riding Hood,” “The Ugly Duckling,” “Beauty and the Beast,” and many other classic fairy tales with a Filipino twist.
The story follows Little Red (Samantha Cheong ’12) who is on a journey to visit her lola (Tagalog for “grandmother”). On the way, she encounters various odd, yet familiar characters such as the Ugly Duckling, Aladdin, Belle, the Beast, and, of course, the infamous Big Bad Wolf. However, what you don’t expect is that upon meeting each of them, Little Red is shown traditional Filipino dances such as the Itik Itik and the popular Maglalatik, which involved male members of the cast, clad in coconut shells, performing a rhythmic dance to a fast beat.
“[The Maglalatik] was always the one most people, when they first join PAL, are a little skeptical [of], taking their shirts off and just baring all, but now I’ve been here for three years [and] it’s one of my favorite dances,” Quinto said.
After the show, the League presented a photo montage as a tribute to the fun times they had during the year. With witty comments and candid shots, the photo montage was an entertaining end to the evening.
Despite a few difficulties, the event was enchanting and the Disney references and fun musical performances made it a nostalgic experience. Hopefully next year’s Bayanihan will build upon these strengths, and PAL will be better prepared for the large number of guests it is sure to have.
