THE Pan American Concerned Citizen’s Action League, Inc. (PACCAL) is staging the play Looking for William on Saturday, November 7 2009 at 2pm at the Five Corners Library Auditorium, 678 Newark Ave., Jersey City 07306. The theater event is in line with PACCAL’s “Artists-in-Residence” Project, which is carried out through the 2009 Local Arts Program (LAP) Grant, New Jersey State Council on the Arts (NJSCA), Department of State, a partner of the National Endowment for the Arts administered by the Hudson County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs (HCOCHA).
PACCAL’s Artists-in-Residence Project aims to promote the growth of Filipino-American artists in various mediums and the Filipino culture and heritage, as well as reach the underserved and hard-to-reach communities, such as the Asian immigrants. For the year 2009, PACCAL is proud to showcase the talents of its two artists, Virgie Alvarez (folk dance artist) and Tino Aquino Capili (playwright/director/actor). Ms. Alvarez is a former Bayanihan Dance Troupe member, who has earned for herself a name in the art of Filipino folk dances. She was the major artist featured in the Pasko Sa Nayon musical concert, which was part of PACCAL’s Artists-in-Residence Project funded by HCOCHA under the LAP Grant 2006. Ms. Alvarez has backgrounds in both ballet and jazz dances. Capili, on the other hand, is an English Communication Arts graduate who has organized a total of 17 stage plays since coming to the US in 2002 in his capacity as playwright, director and stage actor. His most recent success was the play Dust Castles which was also staged at the Five Corners Library Auditorium in May this year.
Looking for William was Capili’s first major play in the US and was initially staged in Jersey City, NJ in March 2004 under the auspices of the Philippine-American Friendship Committee (PAFCOM). In August of the same year, PAFCOM collaborated with the Office of the Consul General, New York and presented Looking for William at the Kalayaan Hall Auditorium at the Philippine Consulate Manhattan, New York in connection with Hon. Consul General Cecilia Rebong’s Classroom Galing sa Mamamayang Pilipino project. In July 2005, the play was staged in the Bergen County by the Filipino-American Association of Fair Lawn (FAAFL) for the benefits of the recipients of the Gawad-Kalinga projects and services in the Philippines. Among other plays that Capili has written and directed are Kasaysayan ng Isang Pag-ibig, Ang Aginaldo, Home for Christmas, Courting Melinda, Ang Pagbabalik ni Nonong, Ang Nobya Ko’ng Arabyana, Sandcastles on the Hill, Father on Earth… Father in Heaven, Dr. Jorshi Sonza’s How To Cook Adobo, and Dust Castles.
Under the new title Sunrise, Sunset: Looking for William, the play still touches on issues and conflicts encountered by the Filipino-American youth in their life here in America and the challenges faced by the community and authorities in handling the problems of these youth. The Artists-in-Residence Project is part of PACCAL’s Cultural Arts and Heritage Program to promote New Jersey’s Filipino and Asian heritage through culturally competent and community needs-based programs and initiatives.
For more information, please call Linda Mayo: 201 388-1260; Betty Buenviaje: 973 220-2765; Rose Javier: 201 993-8815; Rudy Nicolas - 201 988 1799; and the Jersey City Five Corners Library: 201-547-4543.
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