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CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines — The Xavier Stage, a resident repertory theater company of Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan, has made its mission to showcase productions that not only entertain the audience but also depict social issues and challenge the status quo.

True to what it stands for, The Xavier Stage, or TXS for short, fosters artists to strengthen and sustain cultural regeneration and development in this part of the Philippines, and aligns its activities with the university’s vision as it aims to be “a leading theater company in Southeast Asia by 2033.”

In the convergence of university theater companies in Mindanao dubbed as “Tanghal,” The Xavier Stage was a major course in the menu of performances slated on November 25 and 26.

The Xavier Stage presented a twin-bill of Dr Art Casanova’s “Nang Lumuha ang mga Tala sa Gitna ng Lawa” and Romeo Narvaez’s “Dula Ta.” This amalgamated production was aptly titled “Singanin,” a Meranao term for “aspiration.”

Singanin depicted the struggles of the Moro people who were victims of the Mindanao conflicts in the areas of North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, and the Zamboanga Peninsula.

Casanova’s part presented cunningly the intertwines of land grabbing, hunger and poverty, and the infamous clashes between the Ilaga and the Barracudas — who were para-militaries created by scheming politicians a year before the declaration of Martial Law in 1971. Meanwhile, Narvaez poignantly reflected the contemporary Mindanao conflict through the eyes of two children who witnessed the ravages of war at a young age.

Mindanao theater is alive

Singanin was staged under the artistic direction of Hobart Savior, who is also the director of Xavier Center for Culture and the Arts (XCCA), the host institution for the tenth installment of Tanghal Mindanao.

“Mindanao theater is alive!” Savior exclaimed. “It has been one of the missions of The Xavier Stage to showcase plays with social relevance and with peace as an aspiration.”

Called “Bart” by his friends and family, he has directed, acted, and managed art programs and film festivals. Besides his theater work, he is the author and festival director of Cinemagis Digital Short Film Festival in Northern Mindanao. Bart also teaches literature and language courses at Xavier’s College of Arts and Sciences.

The artists’ pool of The Xavier Stage is composed of XU students, faculty, staff, and alumni.

Over the years, TXS has received good reviews for their plays, namely, “New Yorker sa Burgos,” “20 Questions,” “Barracks ni Tenyente Fuego,” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” among others.

For Singanin, TXS has collaborated with two multi-awarded playwrights from two Mindanao State University (MSU) campuses: MSU Marawi’s Dr. Art Casanova and MSU General Santos’s Romeo Narvaez.

Casanova has written and published more than 50 English and Filipino stage plays; mostly children’s plays based upon Mindanaon folktales and legends. He has also directed more than 50 musical and straight plays of different genres in English and Filipino languages. Casanova also served as production manager, technical director, and tour manager of the major productions of the MSU Sining Kambayoka such as “Mga Kuwentong Maranao,” “Maharadia Lawana,” “Serapio in Rock,” “Ambon, Ulan, Baha,” “Halik sa Kampilan,” “Di Maguni-gunii A Papanok,” and “Kambayoka’s Vaudeville,” among others. He is also a founding member of Sining Kambayoka and he has undergone numerous training programs in acting, directing, and integrated arts here in the Philippines and as well as in other countries in Asia Pacific.

On the other hand, Narvaez teaches at MSU GenSan and serves as the artistic director of Kabpapagariya Ensemble. His play “Dula Ta” has been staged in Cyprus and Jerusalem to promote peace education and understanding. It has also been featured in various peace conferences and cultural gatherings in the Philippines.

In 2012, “Dula Ta” has been part of the main entries of the 4th National Theater Festival at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

10th Tanghal Mindanao

Other stories reflective of Mindanao conflicts and aspirations took center stage at the 10th Tanghal University Theater Festival hosted by Xavier University.

“Through this theater festival, we hope to highlight the issues at the peripheries and the historical injustices in Mindanao,” Savior said.

The festival featured three main performances from The Xavier Stage, Mindanao State University Marawi’s Sining Kambayoka Ensemble, and La Salle University Ozamis’s Teatro Guindegan, and two fringe presentations from Dulaang Atenista and Pasundayag Community Arts of Cagayan de Oro City.

Through the support of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (National Committee on Dramatic Arts), the tenth installment of Tanghal formed part of the celebration of the Mindanao Week of Peace 2016.

In this year’s Tanghal, Mindanao was given Earth (Yuta) as its festival theme, to which the host institution appropriated Yuta to signify Mindanao as the “Land of Promise and Peace.” ∎ (By Stephen J Pedroza)