Filipino culture dances into Wales

Lahing Kayumanggi are performing a Filipino cultural dance show in Cardiff

LK dancers perform a rural inspired dance (All photographs are the property of the LK Dance Company)

Lahing Kayumanggi Dance Company (LK) is coming to Cardiff on 19^th November to spread knowledge of the Philippines’s native practices in song and dance.

The LK, performing as part of the Filipino Cultural Show, will dance at Motor Point Arena, portraying the Philippines’s diverse traditions and the cultures it is influenced by.

It was set up by volunteers seventeen years ago as a way of keeping in touch with Filipino traditions and practices.

The authenticity of the company is seen through their colourful costumes and energetic dances that have been performed across various venues in the UK.

Henrik Bodilsen, the LK’s secretary, says, “We think of the Philippines as one nation but they are a vast ethnic group, a melting pot of many different cultures.”

Achievements:
The LK has become seen as an informal ambassador for the Philippines for its portrayal of the country and its culture. They were awarded the Presidential Banaag Award “in recognition of its unwavering dedication to artistic excellence, raising the cultural awareness and ethnic pride of the Filipino community in the United Kingdom, and supporting cultural and humanitarian activities in the Philippines.”

The dance company’s performances have been celebrated across the UK, including the Philippine Embassy, World Travel Markets, Filipino Barrio Fiestas and community events, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and Royal Festival Hall. It has even performed on BBC TV’s Generation Game.

Dances

Philippine Folk:
These are highland tribal dances in which the Kalinga, Ifugao, Gaddang, Bontoc and other tribal groups celebrate a wild feasting, headhunting, death, a peace pact, a wedding or a bountiful harvest.

An example is bumayah which is a dance traditionally held during Thanksgiving or after a bountiful harvest

Nostalgia Filipina:
After the Spaniards came in the 16^th century, the Filipinos, particularly those in the Luzon and the Visayan regions, were converted to Catholicism and introduced to western civilization.

An example is La Simpatica, a courtship dance where a lady charms her four suitors.

Hariraya:
Despite the Spaniards attempt of conversion, the Muslim religion in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan prevailed.

An example dance is Tahing Baila, a dance imitating the playfulness of fish as they swim through the water.

Sa Kabukiran:
There dances are from the countryside and portray multiple moods of the people and their appreciation of nature and life in rural areas.

An example of this is the Sunduan dance which celebrates the spirit of the villagers working on the farm.

If you want to learn more about the venues the LK Dance Company performs at, the history of the company and see pictures, go to its official website.