Bravo! The Best of Philippine Dance

"If I didn't have kids, I would be at the theater or the ballet every single night of my life." - Sarah Jessica Parker       

I was treated to an evening of breathtaking and powerful performance of Ballet Philippines last Saturday night at SM Lanang Premier. I was immediately transfixed to a time where I believed in princes and princesses and when I would perform in front of relatives and friends for the crisp 100 peso bill every Christmas.

Along with fellow Davao blogger Lovely, we were ushered to our front-row seats for Bravo: The Best of Philippine Dance by the country's premier ballet company - Ballet Philippines. Bravo showcased their twin mastery of classical ballet and contemporary dance by BP 2, Ballet Philippine's junior performing company. I went over the performance repertoire and was glad that there was a mix of timeless classics such as excerpts from Coppelia, Sleeping Beauty and Don Quixote highlighting the dancers' impeccable technique. The modern pieces such as Reysing, Rurok and Moslem (yes, that's how it was spelled in the repertoire) gave them freedom to express themselves and show off their dramatic abilities.

Ballet Philippines was established in 1969 by Alice Reyes with the support of Eddie Elejar and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). Since then it has become known worldwide for its repertoire of classical and modern pieces. Its school, CCP Dance School, continues to produce dancers of international caliber and earned accolades for their performances abroad. What a great honor to have fine dancers perform in front of you!

This was not my first time to go to a ballet performance but it was a long time ago, thanks to a date who had a cousin in another ballet company. Anyway, I chose to be more dressy that night compared to what I would wear to an event where bloggers are invited. My favorite part of the repertoire was the contemporary pieces - it was like watching So You Think You Can Dance live! 

The third to the last performance was the most unforgettable to me. It was a contemporary ballet to Shirley Bassey's This Is My Life. Ma. Celina Dofitas battement and grand plie perfectly told the story behind the song - a woman resolved to look beyond life's pains and misses to see the brighter side of things. Truly it was poetry in motion watching strength and grace all at the same time! Magnifique! Close second would be the all-male duo of Victor Maguad and Mark Grantos who danced to Barbara Streisand's Flowers. I think the inspiration for this piece is that prime-time soap My Husband's Lover. It was beautiful!

Thank you to SM Lanang Premier for inviting us to this rare chance to watch Ballet Philippines perform. Don't miss other  exciting events happening at SM Lanang Premier. Like them on Facebook and follow @SM Lanang on Twitter for news and event updates.

Me and Lovely after watching Bravo (photo by Lovely Boiser)