The New Age Of Dance

Eat Bulaga, the longest running noontime-variety show on Philippine television, introduced the idea of background dancers for their segments in 1999. Originally called Chicken Sandwich Dancers, the group consisted of four girls which included Rochelle Pangilinan of the Sexbomb Dancers fame.

Joy Cancio started recruiting new faces and soon enough they became regulars in the now defunct Laban O Bawi portion of the show. The name of the group was coined by Joey De Leon, one of the show’s premier hosts, due to the popularity of the song Sexbomb by Tom Jones during that time.

The girls proved that were not only dancers because on 2002 a sub-group was formed which focused on singing and dancing called the Sexbomb singers. They also have a show in GMA 7, Daisy Siete, wherein the girls showcases their prowess in acting.

There are many detractors who showed up when the girls started to rise to fame. Their first and foremost critics are the viewers especially the parents. In time, the girls started shedding their clothes piece by piece. From the conservative ones they used to wear they changed it to skimpy outfits. Their dances were deemed too provocative. Critics label their dances as “sexual” partnered with their original songs which have strong sexual references in it due to the double-meaning lyrics.

The arrival of the Sexbomb dancers ignited the passion for novelty music and dance.

The Dance

Sexbomb provided a refreshing new genre of dance. Aside from entertainment purposes they encouraged many girls how to dance. Their routine and steps were widely appreciated across the country. They sold many dance albums and became ambassadors to different companies by promoting them through their dances.

It is very easy to follow due to repetitive and simple dance moves. Their steps are geared toward the poor and middle class due to the novelty feel of it.

But by watching it closely, most of their earlier dance moves are inappropriate because it has elements of sex in it. The way the girls gyrate their bodies seems like they mimic sexual intercourse.

The dancers outgrew that phase and ventured into different genres of dance like hip-hop and contemporary jazz coupled with rhythmic gymnastics. But the dance seems impossible to imitate and very dangerous because of their signature splits and cartwheels.

They became an institution when it comes to dancing due to the popularity of their style and its originality. They are one of the most sought-after dancers on TV and will still be as long as there is Eat Bulaga.

The Music

Their singing career did pretty well. It was a combination of dance and novelty songs which became a hit. Often partnered with dance moves popularized by the group, their music has dominated TV sets not only in Eat Bulaga but different shows.

The songs were often composed by Joey De Leon and Lito Camo. They were criticized for having double-meaning lyrics and for having no substance whatsoever. Their only purpose was to entertain which they did. - JOHN JOSHUA GUZMAN

Photograph Source:
http://www.igma.tv/article.php?articleid=1379

Singkil: Filipino Royal Dance

Think of Tinikling with double the bamboos and triple the risks. In Singkil, it’s difficult to stand up on a pair of bamboos and dance gracefully while keeping your confidence and pride intact.

Singkil, also called as the Princess Dance or The Royal Maranao Dance, was based on Maranao’s epic tale Ramayana. It was derived from Princess Gandingan’s graceful act of avoiding the falling trees and rocks in a forest during an earthquake caused by the fairies.

Singkil is a courtship dance between a Prince and a Princess. Dancers of Singkil are not encouraged to smile. Instead, they hold their chin up, signifying the seriousness and sophistication of respected women.

The famed Maranao dance is composed of three groups of dancers. The first group includes at least three bamboo dancers, the second includes at least six fan dancers, and the last includes the Princess, her maid, and the Prince. At least seven men are needed; four will be the bamboo clickers and three will be the bamboo carriers. The music’s rhythm turns faster as the dance progresses.

The presentation of the dance is divided into three parts. In the first part, the bamboo dancers perform the introductory dance. The dancers wear pointed finger accessories similar to those worn by Thai dancers. The dance steps of these bamboo dancers include hopping and stepping on the ground.

As the performance progresses, each dancer climbs on a pair of bamboos held horizontally by two men and continues to perform hand and body movements while standing on the bamboos. After this, the bamboo dancers are seated on the bamboos and wait for the fan dancers’ turn.

The fan dancers enter the stage through slow point steps and perform the fan dance. Each fan dancer holds a fan in each hand and uses her wrist to move the fan in several different ways. Fan dances include the swirling motion of the hand and wrist and the up-down movement of the fans. The fan dancers exit the scene to announce the arrival of the Princess.

The arrival of the Princess, which takes several minutes long, shows the grandeur of the Maranao royalty. The Princess, seated on a pair of bamboos, enters the stage along with a maiden who carries an umbrella for her and climbs down to dance on the ground. She dances in a stationary position, moving just her hips and her arms. Like the fan dancers, she holds a fan on each hand and swirls it along with her body movements. Then, the Prince enters the stage and dances along with the Princess. This is the highlight of the Singkil where the Prince courts the Princess and dances along with her while avoiding the clicking bamboos.

The colors and textures of the silk dresses and the intricacy of the accessories used in Singkil makes it a dance fit for the royalty. Its refined and complex dance moves define the rich Maranao culture that had marked Filipino talents and identity. - EDREE ESTAURA

Photograph Source:
http://www.lakbaypilipinas.com/images/lanao_maranao_singkil.jpg

Single Step – Hop – Double Step – Hop: The Tinikling Dance

The easy way to do the Tinikling dance is to master the three basic steps: Singles, Doubles, and Hop. The combination of each basic step comprises the Tinikling dance steps.
The singles and doubles refer to the number of feet that will touch the floor at a given step. In singles, only one foot touches the floor while doubles mean both feet will touch the ground. Meanwhile, the hop step is performed to cross over the bamboo poles to complete one routine of the Tinikling dance.

It is performed by four people, usually composed of three boys and a girl. While the two boys operate the bamboo poles by hitting them to the ground in rhythm to the music, the other pair (a boy and a girl) will perform the dance.

Tinikling follows the 4/4 pattern which denotes that there are four beats in every measure and the repeated rhythmical beat goes, “slap, slap, clap, clap.” Balance is not really a requirement in this dance, teamwork, agility and good timing are.

First is teamwork. It’s important because the bamboo clappers needs to be coordinated as they hit the bamboos on the floor and then together. The dancers must also work in synch to prevent themselves from rambling. Finally, all the performers, dancers and bamboo clappers, should work as one. They must have the same speed, same beat counting, and same rhythm. Second is agility. This refers to the speed, alertness, and flexibility of the dancers. For instance, if the bamboo clappers seem to hit the bamboos on a faster pace in order to follow the rhythm of the music, dancers must adjust quickly and must increase their speed as well. Third is timing. Timing is important to prevent the feet from being hit by bamboo poles. Performers of Tinikling must have good timing as when to start doing the single step or the double step or to hop across the bamboo poles. Like in every dance, the first step is always crucial. The first step, most of the time, will reveal how the dance will end.

The dance is conceived to have developed from wide imagination of the natives in the islands of Leyte in Visayas by imitating the movements of “tikling” birds that skilfully walks around and between tree branches and some grass stems. Today, we experience the gracefulness enriched in the dance acclaimed as one of Philippines’ best known dances and feted as the country’s national dance.

Performing the dance is identified similarly with playing the jumping rope, but instead of a rope the performers use two bamboo poles. The dance is quite exhausting and since the performers are hopping from one side of the bamboo poles to another, it requires a lot of energy. - NIKKI ANGULO

Photograph Source:
http://www.likha.org/galleries/tinikling.asp