ACTIVITY

KNOWING
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES IN BICOL
1. Peñafrancia Festival, Naga – September
- A barge procession, fireworks and more, celebrating Bicol’s patron, Our Lady of
Peñafrancia.

2. Tinagba Festival, Iriga City – February

- A harvest thanksgiving including parades, street dancing and sporting challenges.

3. Ibalong Festival, Legazpi – August

- A celebration of a local legend, with masked and costumed reconstructions of classic
battles.
4. Pantomina - is a Bicolano folk dance that came from the Spanish word for “pantomime”,
because of its courting/wooing movements.

5. Tigsikan - Tigsik is a form of literature in the Bicol region of the Philippines. This kind of
literacy is somehow similar to Haiku of Japan which is also has three phases but it does
not follow the 5,7,5 pattern thus making it different to the number of of syllables used in
it which rhythms accordingly.

IMPORTANCE OF THESE PERFORMANCE PRACTICES IN CONTEMPORARY ART

Arts festivals are a cultural highlight in Bicol region. Celebrations of the richness
and diversity of culture and creativity, they often encompass a variety of contemporary
and traditional art forms dance, music, theatre, arts and crafts. Culturally, they offer a
unique snapshot of a community’s identity, both providing an opportunity to revitalize
and preserve cultural practices, and often serving as a creative laboratory for
contemporary performers.