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DEPARTMENT
OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
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DEPARTMENT
OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
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SFA-AGR-190-08 |
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14th HONOLULU FESTIVAL |
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26 March 2008— As part of its public diplomacy and cultural outreach program, the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu participated in the 14th Honolulu Festival, a three-day celebration of music, dance, art and culture at the 14" Honolulu Festival from 14 to 16 March.
The Honolulu Festival is Hawaii’s premier cultural event promoting understanding, economic cooperation and ethnic harmony between the people of Hawaii and the Asia-Pacific region. Each year, the Festival draws thousands of new and returning spectators who are looking for an experience beyond Hawaii. Through educational programs and activities sponsored by the Honolulu Festival Foundation, a nonprofit organization, the Festival continues to successfully share the rich and vibrant blend of the Asian and Hawaiian cultures with the rest of the world.
The highlight of Philippine participation in the festival was the Cagayan State University's Panaddamman Dance Troupe who traveled to Hawaii with the assistance of the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and the Department of Tourism. The group's street dancing mile repertoire at the Grand Parade received rounds of applause from the thousands of spectators throughout the one mile avenue in Waikiki. Under the tutelage of Mr. Allan Samonte, Choreographer and Artistic Director of Panaddamman, the groups’ performances showcased a collage of Philippine ethnic dances and movements that were perfectly synchronized with modern dance tunes tracing the origins of the Filipino dance from the aborigines to the contemporary global Filipino.
The Consulate also mobilized local groups from the Filipino Community- Bibak Hawaii, the Katipunan and Bullalayao Philippine Dance Company from the University of Hawaii (UH) at Manoa- for the Grand Parade on16 March. Katipunan and Bulialayao are made up of Filipino-American students in the Philippine Studies Program of the UH and Bibak-Hawaii is an active Filipino community organization whose members are from Benguet, Ifugao, Bontoc, Apayao, Abra, and Kaliuga. The three groups were dressed in Philippine costumes and performed ethnic dances during the street dancing parade on 16 March.
Also featured during the Grand Parade were three beauty queens of the Filipino Community: Ms Teen Filipina Hawaii, Miss Melissa McMurray; Ms. Oahu Filipina, Miss Jerryca Gasmen; and Mrs. Hawaii Filipina, Mrs. Emme Anderson. The ladies wore “terno" and participated in the parade with pride and poise, ably showcasing Panaddamman also participated in the parade with pride and poise, ably showcasing the Filipina’s famed grace and beauty.
Panaddamman also participated in the Honolulu Festival's Educational School Tour held at the Hawaii Convention Center on 14 March. It gave students the opportunity to get a close-up look at Festival exhibits as well as a chance to meet and talk with Festival artisans and performers. The members of the Panaddamman shared their knowledge of Philippine culture through interactive demonstrations of various ethnic Philippine dances.
Another highlight of the Honolulu Festival was the Craft Fair which was held on 15 and 16 March at the Hawaii Convention Center. The Consulate participated in the Craft Fair in coordination with the Department of Tourism Office in Los Angeles by having an exhibition booth focused on the Philippines as a prime tourist destination. END
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