RESEARCH FIVE FAMOUS PESON CONNECTED TO OUR

PHILIPPINEFOLK DANCE AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION.

1.Francisca Reyes-Aquino. Reyes-Aquinois considered the mother of Filipino folk

dance. Shetraveled to various parts of the country to record dances from different
provinces. In 1921 during the Manila FiestaCarnival, Reyes-Aquino, who was a
student assistant for Physical Education, presented 4 dances – cariñosa,
abaruray,salabat, and areuana. She then earned a master’s degree from UP, where she
presented her dissertation PhilippineFolk Dances and Games, which would be used by
teachers and playground instructors as material for teaching dance.Reyes-Aquino’s
research produced a number of books. She’s the author of Philippine Folk Dances and
Games (1927),Philippine National Dances (1946), Gymnastics for Girls (1947),
Fundamental Dance Steps and Music (1948), ForeignFolk Dances (1949), Dances for
All Occasions (195), Playground Demonstration (1951), Philippine Folk Dances in
6volumes (1951-1979), Rhythmic Activities (1952), and Philippine Folk Dances and
Songs as co-author in 1966.

2. Leonor Orosa-Goquingco. Orosa-Goquingco is known as the “Mother of

Philippine Dance Theater” and “Dean of Filipino Performing Arts Critics.” Born in
Jolo, Sulu, Orosa-Goquinco finished a BS Education degree, summa cum laude at St.
Scholastica’s College. She then took graduate courses in theater craft, drama, and
music at Columbia University and Teachers College in New York.
Orosa-Coquinco started as a ballet dancer and also took courses in professional and
teacher training under some of the best dance teachers of her time, including National
Artist for Dance Francisca Reyes-Aquino.At 17, Orosa-Gonquingco started
experimenting with dance. Among the productions she produced include Circling the
Globe, Dance Panorama, and The Elements. After World War 2, she organized the
Philippine Ballet, where she brought to life Noli Me Tangere onstage. In 1958, she
founded the Filipinescas Dance Company, which would go on various tours around
the world. Aside from ballet, Orosa-Gonquingco was known for breaking traditions in
dance. Several of her choreographic dances formed the Filipinescas: Philippine Life,
Legend, and Lore in Dance production. Aside from being a dancer, Orosa-
Gonquingco also wrote books, essays, and a one-act play. She became the recipient of
various awards, including a Presidential Award of Merit in 1970. She was awarded
National Artist for Dance in 1976.

3. Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula. Lucrecia Reyes-Urtula started her love for folk dance
when she was young. Born in Iloilo, Lucrecia was exposed to many folk dances
because of her father, a colonel, who was stationed in various parts of the
Philippines.She took ballet lessons in Baguio and also apprenticed under Francisca
Reyes-Aquino. She graduated with a degree in Physical Education from the Philippine
Women’s University (PWU) in 1950. Lucrecia started teaching at PWU and was
active in the Filipiniana Folk Arts Group as both teacher and student. In 1955, the
group attended the International Festival of Dance and Music in Dacca, Pakistan,
which inspired her and the group to continue researching local dances. They also
reached out to more indigenous groups to learn about their culture.She thenbecame
part of the Bayanihan Philippine Dance Company. Lucrecia was also its
choreographer and dance director. In her tours with the group, Reyes-Urtula started
choreographing not just stage but also film and television.Lucrecia also served as
artistic director for dance at the Folk Arts Theater, conceptualized and managed the
Philippine Folk Dance Society, among others. She was awarded National Artist for
Dance in 1988

4. Alice Reyes. Alice Reyes comes from a family of performers. Her father Ricardo
Reyes was “Mr Folk Dancer” and a pianist, while her mother Adoracion was voice
teacher. Her sisters Denisa Reyes and Edna Vida are also dancer-choreographers,
while sisters Betty and Cecile are musicians.

After graduating from Maryknoll (now Miriam College) with a degree in History and
Foreign Affairs iin 1964, she began to teach in the school and later, took a graduate
course at nearby Ateneo de Manila University. She would later on earn various
scholarships, including a grant from the John D. Rockefeller III Fund. She later
completed her master’s degree in Fine Arts major in dance at Sarah Lawrence
College.Reyes was already exposed to dance at an early age, having danced with her
father when she was barely 14. She became a dancer and choreographer for a number
of TV shows and productions and performed in various parts of the world.
In 1969, she founded the Alice Reyes and Modern Dance Company, which
In 1969, she founded the Alice Reyes and Modern Dance Company, which performed
at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Reyes would later organize dance
workshops.Her group paved the way for the formation of the CCP Dance Company,
now known as Ballet Philippines. She would later serve as artistic director of Ballet
Philippines from 19970 to 1991.Among her well known dance choreographies include
Tales of the Manuvu and Rama Hari, which she worked on with Ryan Cayabyab. Her
work with Ballet Philippines has been recognized worldwide, with its use of Filipino
and Asian themes and music. For her work in dance, Reyes, was given a number of
awards, including the Gawad CCP para sa Sining and in 2012, was awarded the
Gawad Buhay Outstanding Choreopgrahy for Dance for Rama Hari. She was
recognized as a National Artist for Dance in 2014.

5. Ligaya Fernando Amilbangsa. Ligaya Amilbangsa is a Ramon Magsaysay

awardee, known for her research on the pangalay or igal, a pre-Islamic traditional
dance among the ethnic groups in the Southern Philippines.Amilbangsa first learned
of the dance when she her husband, Datu Punjungan Amilbangsa moved to Sulu.
Captivated by the pangalay dance, she began to research about it and later studied
culture, music, and the visual arts of the Sama and Sama Dilaut (Badjao), Jama
Mapun, and the Tausug. Her name became known thanks to the work she did in
documenting the pangalay/igal dance style of the Yakan known as pamansak.Aside
from the pangalay, Amilbangsa also documented other dance forms – the langka, a
martial dance form and the lunsay, a song-dance tradition. After her researches,
Amilbangsa established the Amilbangsa Instruction Method (AIM), which gave
children and adults the opportunity to study the pangalay in a scientific and systematic
form. She also published two books, Pangalay: Traditional Dancers and Related Folk
Artistic Expressions (1983) and Ukkil: Visual Arts of the Sulu Archipelago in 2005.
In Manila, she staged the pangalay and lunsay dances for the Hwa Yi Ethnic Dance
Center and co-founded the AlunAlun Dance Circle in 1999, which aims to promote
pangalay through performances, research, and dance training. Her work has been
recognized both local and international including UNESCO and the International
Dance Competition in Seoul in 1994, where her pangalay choreography won the
silver award under the folk dance