Ang Pagbabalik-Tanaw sa Unang Hari ng Balagtasan

Do you still remember when we were still students who used to participate in activities called "Balagtasan", especially during the celebration of "Buwan ng Wika" in our schools?

Balagtasan is a form of Filipino poetic competitions wherein two poets will have a debate in verses.

The first balagtasan was held at Instituto de Mujeres (Women's Institute) on April 6, 1924. The winner of the said balagtasan was Jose Corazon de Jesus, also known as Huseng Batute. He was then crowned as the King of Balagtasan (Hari ng Balagtasan).

In honor of the 86th death anniversary of the great poet, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) will be holding Ang Pagbabalik-Tanaw sa Unang Hari ng Balagtasan: Ang Pagdiriwang ng Buhay at Mga Akda ni Jose Corazon de Jesus (A Look Back at the First King of Balagtasan: A Celebration of the Life and Works of Jose Corazon de Jesus).



The celebration will be a two-part event:

• The first part will be a Forum about the poet's life and works which will be featuring experts from various cultural organization
• The second part will be Pagtatanghal (Performance) which will be featuring:
  • the Philippine Opera Company (POC)
  • rappers Beware and Negatibo
  • veteran actors John Arcilla, Ronnie Lazaro, Lou Veloso
  • ventriloquist Ony Carcamo
  • and traditional balagtas performers from Bulacan. 

The event will be hosted by multi-awarded writer and performance artist Vim Nadera and Louise O. Lopez.

Ang Pagbabalik-Tanaw sa Unang Hari ng Balagtasan: Ang Pagdiriwang ng Buhay at Mga Akda ni Jose Corazon de Jesus will be taking place at Tanghalang Huseng Batute (CCP Studio Theatre) on May 26, 2018 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM.

The event will be free and open to the public.

For more information:

• contact the Cultural Center of the Philippines via their Facebook;
• their number: (02) 832 1125
• or visit them at CCP Complex, Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City, Philippines