From assistant stage manager to the title role, Pearl Dames shares her amazing ‘Ibong Adarna’ journey – and other ballet adventures
Pearl first performed in Ibong Adarna when Ballet Manila was invited to participate in Israel’s Karmiel Dance Festival in 2018. Among her roles was that of an Amazona or warrior woman. Photo courtesy of Jessica Pearl Dames
By Jv Ramos
Fresh from Ballet Manila’s two-week holiday break, Jessica Pearl Dames learns in early 2026 that she would be playing the titular character in Gerardo Francisco Jr.’s Ibong Adarna tour in Dumaguete. Her casting, confirmed through a schedule of the company’s forthcoming performances, was unexpected – but also a challenge that the principal dancer instantly welcomed.
Principal dancer Jessica Pearl Dames has learned to make bigger movements when playing the Ibong Adarna as the costume can be quite constricting. Photo by MarBi Photography
Knowing she only had a month to prepare, Pearl immediately went to work on her role, especially the partnering aspect. It was a good thing, she says, that she was paired with soloist Anselmo Dictado who had danced as Don Juan before and could guide her as she stepped into this new part.
Already warned by principal dancer Abigail Oliveiro – who originally played the role of the enchanted bird – that the armor-like golden helmet with feathers can be restricting, Pearl immediately rehearsed in costume to know what adjustments she had to do. “Ang solusyon talaga ay lakihan ang movement kasi nga nakakaliit ng galaw ang costume." (The solution is really to exaggerate your movements because the costume tends to make your movements small.)
Being cast in the title role of Gerardo Francisco Jr.’s Ibong Adarna was a surprise, says Jessica Pearl Dames, but it was a challenge that she instantly welcomed. Photo by Giselle P. Kasilag
Pearl is thankful to Abi as the latter gave her numerous tips about assuming the Ibong Adarna character, including the makeup for it. Since Pearl was not used to applying a colorful face, they even scheduled an off-studio tutorial so Abi could show her how to do the Ibong Adarna look. "Nu’ng natutunan ko na, sobrang nag-enjoy na ako gawin siya at mas mabilis na rin akong matapos (Once I learned it, I enjoyed doing it so much and I was also able to do it fast),” notes Pearl who describes Abi as having interpreted the character beyond being fierce. The Ibong Adarna is mysterious, free and commanding – but it only becomes fierce after the successive attempts to capture her.
Because of a stress fracture, Pearl wasn’t able to dance when Ibong Adarna premiered in 2017. Instead, she was assigned as assistant stage manager and did work behind the scenes.
Asked if she ever imagined herself to be the Ibong Adarna, Pearl – who has been with Ballet Manila for 11 years – answers no, as in the previous runs of the ballet, she was too focused on carrying out the tasks assigned to her. When the ballet premiered in 2017, she had a stress fracture and was unable to dance. While recovering, she was detailed as an assistant to stage manager Sunshine Domine instead. “Napaka-challenging kasi ang strikto ni Ms. Sunshine. Natatakot akong magkamali sa pagbigay ng direksyon sa mga set movers.” (It was very challenging because Ms. Sunshine was very strict. I was afraid of making mistakes in giving directions to the set movers.)
In the first iteration of the multi-awarded Ibong Adarna, there were about 15 people assigned to move set pieces, but as the ballet was redeveloped for touring, these movers were removed and the dancers themselves would move the set pieces as part of the choreography.
Pearl never thought she’d dance as Odette in Swan Lake, but she got to perform the role in July 2025 at Silliman University in Dumaguete, with soloist Noah Esplana as her Prince Siegfried. Photo courtesy of Jessica Pearl Dames
It was in 2018 when Ibong Adarna was brought to Israel that Pearl first experienced being a castmember, as part of the corps de ballet. There, she danced as a maiden, as an aliptaptap and as an Amazona or female warrior. The quick costume changes and the use of multiple accessories made it a tricky assignment. “Kailangan talaga magtulungan para makapasok ng stage on time. Hanggang ngayon, bilang Ibong Adarna, tinutulungan ko pa rin ang corps para walang delay.” (You really need to help each other out so you can enter the stage on time. Even until now, as the Ibong Adarna, I help the corps so that there would be no delay.)
It was a triple debut for soloist Noah Esplana (Prince Siegfried) and twins Pearl and Pia Dames (Odette and Odile, respectively) when Ballet Manila brought Swan Lake to Dumaguete. Photo courtesy of Jessica Pearl Dames
In Laguna, Pearl had a new Don Juan in Juan Angelo De Leon, a former Project Ballet Futures scholar who is now a company artist of Ballet Manila. “Thankful ako na naging maganda rin ang partnership namin ni Gelo. Alam ko naman na magaling siya, pero dahil sa age gap namin, hindi ko sure kung ano ang result.” (I’m thankful that our partnership also turned out to be good. I know that he’s good, but because of our age gap, you can’t be too sure of the result.) To her surprise, the young danseur was very communicative in rehearsals and sensitive to how ballerinas feel so their learning process was smooth. “Kahit sa pas de trois namin sa Paquita, masarap siyang katrabaho!" (Even in our Paquita pas de trois, he was an excellent co-dancer!)
Pearl adds that Gelo's hard work beyond the studio really showed in his portrayal of Don Juan. "Nawala ang kaba ko nu’ng sinabi ni Coach Robert (Osorio of Ballet Sport Science) na malakas si Gelo. At malakas nga siya! Okay lahat ng lifts niya sa akin! Looking forward ako sa Areté show at iba pang partnerships namin." (I relaxed when Coach Robert assured me that Gelo is strong. And he is actually strong! All his lifts were secure! I’m looking forward to our Areté show and our other future partnerships.)
Pearl was one of three lead temple dancers in La Bayadere, a classic Ballet Manila restaged after 13 years to end its Prima season last August. Photo by Giselle P. Kasilag
Returning to Dumaguete was special for Pearl as it was there that she made her debut as Odette, the White Swan, in Swan Lake in July 2025. It was actually doubly special as her counterpart Black Swan, Odile, was played by her twin sister and fellow principal dancer Jasmine Pia Dames. Soloist Noah Esplana was their Prince Siegfried. Together, it was a triple debut for the dancers at the Claire Isabelle McGill Luce Auditorium at Silliman University. For Pearl, it was another unexpected casting that she will always treasure. In role usually associated with tall ballerinas, she and Pia managed to make their mark as the White Swan and the Black Swan in the ballet classic, leading to resounding applause at curtain call.
Don Juan (Juan Angelo De Leon) captures the elusive Ibong Adarna (Jessica Pearl Dames) in this promotional photo for the epic ballet, next to be seen in Areté at the Ateneo De Manila University. Photo by MarBi Photography
In Swan Lake last year, the Ibong Adarna shows in Dumaguete last February and in Laguna last August, Pearl felt like a rock star as audiences cheered loudly all the way to the end, and asked for autographs and photos afterwards. “Sobrang di ko makakalimutan ang mga moments na ganyan." (I’ll never forget moments like those.)
Because she has experienced Ibong Adarna both behind the scenes and on stage, Pearl is well aware of how challenging this ballet can be to stage and perform in. Pero iba pa rin talaga ang feeling nang sumasayaw ka at very reactive ang mga nanonood." (But nothing really beats the feeling of dancing and the audience is very reactive to what you’re performing.)
With Ballet Manila’s recently concluded Prima performance season, Pearl notes that the two full-length ballets wherein she debuted carried its own set of challenges.
It may be far-fetched, but a role that Pearl has been thinking of lately is that of the tragic heroine Giselle. After her surprise casting as Odette and Ibong Adarna, who knows what could happen? Photo by Giselle P. Kasilag
In Paquita, aside from the heavy-on-jumping pas de trois, there was the classical variation she needed to do in shows she wasn’t dancing with Gelo and Nanami Hasegawa and Reign Pelegrin. “Act 3 pa ang variation na iyon, kaya ang hirap makuha kung warm enough ka na ba. Mas gusto kong pagod na pagod ako sa pas de trois kaysa maghintay nang matagal at biglang sasayaw ng one-minute lang na variation na puro Italian fouettés.” (That variation doesn’t take place until Act 3, so the whole time while waiting, you’re just anxious if you’ve warmed up enough. I’d rather be exhausted from dancing the pas de trois than wait for a long time backstage and suddenly dance a one-minute variation that has many Italian fouttés.)
In La Bayadere where she was one of the lead shades, the main challenge was waiting until the last act as well to do her variation. “Puro talon din ang variation so nakakapagod. Pero iba pa rin ang pagod ng corps de ballet! Challenging ang season na ito sa kanila!” (My variation had a lot of jumps, so it was tiring. But nothing is more tiring than the work of the corps de ballet. This season was very challenging for them!)
With eleven years of dancing in Ballet Manila, Pearl is still looking forward to dancing more roles. – even the unexpected ones like Odette in Swan Lake and the Ibong Adarna herself in the epic ballet.
“Giselle po ang naging dream role ko recently, so sana sa future mabigyan ako ng chance!” (Giselle is my recent dream role, so I hope to get the chance to dance it in the future.) But just like before, this ballerina is simply happy to perform any role given to her.
For now, she is focusing on her next “flight” as the Ibong Adarna and is embracing the chance to soar once again in this role.
There was thunderous applause at the close of Ibong Adarna at the Jose Rizal Coliseum in Laguna last August. The sound grew even louder when Pearl – as the enchanted bird –came out from the wings to acknowledge the crowd. Video courtesy of Jessica Pearl Dames
