An ally to Ballet Manila since it debuted in 1995, the Friends for Cultural Concerns of the Philippines (FCCP) chose to feature the company in a cocktail musical called Artists & Friends on April 29, 2004 that celebrated the group’s 25th anniversary.

Set at the residence of Belgian Ambassador Christiann Tanghe and wife Gul Tanghe, Artists & Friends drew the who’s who in the art and culture, business, diplomatic and society circles.

The evening’s performance featured the Balcony Scene from Romeo and Juliet as choreographed by People’s Artist of Russia Sergey Vikulov to the music of Prokofiev, with Francis Cascaño and Christine Rocas dancing as Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers.

Ballet Manila also shared its mettle in contemporary dance with Ric Culalic’s Arnis, depicting the movements of this Filipino martial art. The new choreography – then about to make its premiere at the Aberdeen International Youth Festival in Scotland – was performed by Lemuel Capa, Clark Dimayuga, Gerardo Francisco Jr., Roduardo Ma, Ricardo Mallari, Romeo Peralta, Glenn Ragel and FCCP scholars Raymart Ramos and Alvin Santos.

The Ballet Manila delegation was headed by prima ballerina Lisa Macuja-Elizalde and Osias Barroso.

Apart from ballet, Artists & Friends also showcased the visual arts as paintings by FFCP members and scholars were presented in the lush garden setting of the ambassador’s residence.