Remembering Ballet Manila’s debut
Barely two months after forming themselves into a new dance group, Ballet Manila – composed of twelve dancers under the leadership of artistic director of Eric V. Cruz – made its debut on February 17, 1995. Dubbed Ballet Manila Dances!, the show had two performances, one that night and another the following day at the Francisco Santiago Hall of the PCIBank Tower 1.
It took a village to get them that far so soon with meager resources. Thanks primarily to the parents of the twelve pioneers and a circle of supportive friends and sponsors who believed in the group’s potential, the debut proved to be quite a success.
Principal dancer Lisa Macuja captured the emotions of that memorable night in her column in Malaya newspaper called On Pointes. “Opening night, also the birth of Ballet Manila, last Friday night was palpitating with tension backstage… In full make-up and costume, the performers gathered round during ‘green room’ for an impassioned prayer and plea… ‘Please make everything right!’ Eager to conquer, Ballet Manila’s young ballerinas and danseurs couldn’t wait for the performance to start, while this old timer thought, ‘Now if only I had one more month to work, everything would really be perfect.’”
Her own harshest critic, Macuja admitted there were flaws and technical blunders. But despite those, she was satisfied that the dancing that night far exceeded expectations. Writing in her column, she noted how the performances turned out, serving as a vivid document of Ballet Manila’s most memorable evening:
“From the synchronized movements of the girls in Pas D’Action from La Bayadere and Paquita, to the sharp head tosses of Aileen Gallinera and Jeffrey Espejo in the Satanila Pas de Deux and the soft lyrical tenderness of Elline Damian’s and Christopher Mohanani’s White Swan Adagio, Ballet Manila artists flew across the classical repertoire that night with the swiftness and sureness of a supersonic jet. The one neo-classical piece that evening, In Quest, by Osias Barroso, stood out in its powerful strokes of passion, power and love as sought by the ‘questor’ Eduardo Espejo.
“So overpowering was the energy that night that leaps and jumps had to be restrained a bit especially after Osias Barroso and Jeffrey Espejo caught and almost dragged down the whole back curtain with their forceful jetés. Pamela Asprer and Sandralynn Huang traipsed along, not showing bleeding blisters and swollen joints that I knew were hurting… troupers true and through.
“The Philippine premier of the Pas de Trois from Le Corsaire was a revelation even to me, the rehearsal mistress, as Kristin Dabao, Ianne Damian and Sandralynn Huang breezed through the light airy choreography. I never saw that in rehearsal. Eileen Lopez actually stopped herself from a triple pirouette in her variation in Paquita. Everyone was dancing as never before.”
Twenty-six years later, we look back to that time with photographs and mementos – all stored in the Ballet Manila Archives as keepsakes marking a historic beginning in dance.
Ballet Manila’s Pioneer 12 have their picture taken on the Francisco Santiago Hall stage just hours before the company made its debut: (standing, from left) Jeffrey Espejo, Pamela Asprer, Aileen Gallinera, Sandralynn Huang, Elline Damian, Eileen Lopez, Eduardo Espejo, (front, from left) Ianne Damian, Lisa Macuja, Osias Barroso, Kristin Dabao and (foreground) Christopher Mohnani. Photo from Lisa Macuja’s scrapbook
A streamer outside the performance venue announces the two shows marking Ballet Manila’s debut on February 17 and 18, 1995. Photo from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
The first night was special for Ballet Manila’s circle of supporters as they were invited to witness the group’s initial foray on stage as a group. Cut-up invitation and page from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
Backstage, the ballerinas are abuzz preparing for the second night. Photo from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
With tutu and tiara already in place, Lisa Macuja continues to warm up before the second night’s performance. Photo from Lisa Macuja’s scrapbook
Classical pieces dominated Ballet Manila’s repertoire, with the exception being Osias Barroso’s neo-classical In Quest which had its world premiere that night. Cropped program from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
On opening night, Eileen Lopez received this encouraging note from principal dancer Lisa Macuja who also doubled as the group’s rehearsal mistress. Card from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
Ballet Manila, led by artistic director Eric V. Cruz (standing, leftmost), celebrates at the Macuja residence in Quezon City after the second night’s performance. After weeks of grueling rehearsals, it was a well-deserved break and a fitting toast to a successful debut. Photo from Lisa Macuja’s scrapbook
Lisa Macuja and best friend Angela Blardony Ureta at the after party in Lisa’s home. The latter volunteered to be Ballet Manila’s publicist after the group was formed the previous December in the same place where she was also present. Photo from Lisa Macuja’s scrapbook
Writing in her newspaper column, On Pointes, Lisa Macuja shares her memories of pre-show jitters and her assessment of Ballet Manila’s opening-night performances. Clipping and page from Eileen Lopez’s scrapbook
