Tanglaw: Lighting the Arts in San Diego

Filipino-American dancers, musicians, poets, and actors showcase their talents at TANGLAW:LIGHTING THE ARTS, 7:30 P.M. Tuesday, August 17, 1999 at the Lyceum Theatre, Horton Plaza, in downtown San Diego. A 6:30 P.M. reception in the Lyceum Theatre lobby will precede the performances.

Sponsored by the San Diego Samahan Dance Group, the Keeping the Culture (KTC) Scholarship Group, and the San Diego Asian American Repertory Theatre (AART), the event seeks to encourage and promote participation by Filipino Americans in the fine and performing arts. The event name derives from "tanglaw," which means "beam of light" in Tagalog, a prominent language of the Philippines.

Peformances will include:

• An excerpt from AART's fall production of FLIPZOIDS by Ralph Pena;
• An AART reading from GODDESS OF FLOWERS by San Diego playwright Thelma Virata-De Castro
• A performance by Joyce Asuncion of HAWAIIAN SONG by Kent Brisby, Artistic Director of Asian Story Theater. HAWAIIAN SONG is a work developed under the San Diego Asian Americas Project, an interpretive immigrant history of Asian Pacific San Diego.
• Readings by Filipino American poets to be announced.

Proceeds from last year's event raised $1000 to fund this year's inaugural KTC scholarship. The recipient of the inaugural award is Marcelino Newquist , a Filipino-American senior from Bonita Vista High. He will attend the Arts Institute in New York City this fall. The award is based upon evaluation of candidates' artistic submissions and personal interviews.

The KTC Scholarship Group is a volunteer community organization that promotes underexposed and non-traditional artistic disciplines within the Filipino American community; provides opportunities for youth to express artistic talents; and organizes events at which the community-at-large can see and enjoy these expressions.

AART is San Diego's only contemporary Asian-American theater company, enjoying both critical praise and audience approval. Working to expand programs and raise production levels, AART provides the San Diego region with the Asian American perspectives it deserves.

The Samahan Filipino American Performing Arts Company, founded in 1974, is primarily dedicated to the modern-day preservation, development, and presentation of Philippine traditional dance. Samahan's involvement with numerous cultural events, such as the annual Philippine Cultural Arts Festival, distinguishes the organization's integral role in the San Diego community.

For tickets, information, and directions, please contact:

Arnold Marquez
(619) 233-7434
marqueza_nova@juno.com