No! Don't let these cute little fish dancers escape! Courtesy of APA

On Your Mark. Get Set. Show Your Pinoy Pride at the Festival of Philippine Arts & Culture!

By Nayla Huq

The American and Philipino flags flying side by side model an important theme of the Festival. Courtesy of APA

The Association for the Advancement of Filipino American Arts & Culture (aka FilAm Arts) successfully illuminated Filipino culture September 6th and 7th in San Pedro. Thousands of Filipino-Americans gathered to celebrate and empower their Pinoy brothers and sisters with rich traditions and cultural innovation. In this community festival food, music, arts, crafts and dance were fused with Filipino Pride.

The majority of festival-goers were youth seduced by live rock bands, a DJ battle, an R&B performance, and cultural pride. Though many of the acts were youth-oriented, there was something for everyone, for example, a Latin jazz band was featured as well as classical and folk dances.

Eugene Ares patriotically renders his beloved country's landscapes. Courtesy of APA

There was even room for Cultural fusion; multi-ethnic young adults performed the Capoeira Batuque. Originally an Afro-Cuban art form, this playful martial arts dance has gained popularity in the Philippines, and is now being taught by Filipino professors in Southern Calfornia.

For more information on this unique multicultural dance check out capoeirabatuque.org.

Food is one the strongest binding forces that brings people of different cultures together. Courtesy of APA

The words endearing, entertaining and enlightening characterized the traditional dances, as I finally SAW the traditional side of Filipino culture. It has never come to the forefront in any of my relationships with my Filipino friends and neighbors of nine years. Seeing classical dances was definitely one of the most refreshing parts of the program for me.

Among the many participating classical and contemporary talents were consciousness-raising groups who used art to speak out against injustice in the Philippines, and promote health consciousness for Filipino-Americans.

The Festival supports art as a vehicle for social change. Courtesy of APA

The performance Immij-the all-female Asian-American R&B quartet-put on felt like ice water for a desert mouth, in a time when tawdry teens smear the stage with their smut. Immij was recently featured in APA's August 1st issue. Though they didn't open a social organization booth, these ladies harmonized their positive messages in song and dance. They actually showed their talent without ripping their pants off, which seems to have resurged as a new-fangled invention for these trying times in mainstream pop music.

Asian American R&B group, Immij shows a perfect companionship of East and West. Courtesy of APA

Immij performed a few songs from their most recent album, "Destined," but it was a song not featured on this album that best summarized one of the festival's major goals. Harmonizing in Tagalog, they encouraged social harmony in the Filipino as well as the general human community. (Psst: I don't know Tagalog, but picking up on the cognates for "Christian or Muslim," I got the gist of the song.) Pride was further exhibited by a high-flying Filipino flag held in front of the audience.

Check out Immij's website at immijladies.com.

Kudos to FilAm Arts for putting on such an empowering extravaganza! Intermingling contemporary and classical aspects of the culture demonstrates FilAm Arts' and the Filipino community's open-mindedness and cultural pride. If unity is what they're seeking, this festival definitely follows the right track to achieving that goal.

Find out more about FilAm Arts at filamarts.org