#payag

"Shah Jahan on Horseback", Folio from the Shah Jahan Album by Payag, Islamic Art

Medium: Ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper

Purchase, Rogers Fund and The Kevorkian Foundation Gift, 1955 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

“Payag” was released online around 8:00 PM on the 21st of September. It was the anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law and the timing couldn’t have been better. The video was uploaded on Quaranteatro’s Facebook page after a series of display photo blasts and other announcements. It was a free virtual theatre production. The performance itself, which lasted eight minutes and thirteen seconds, was an artistic success, as cohesive and powerful and resonant as we hoped it would be.

“Payag” was directed by Lia de Jesus and features performances by Dulaang UP students, Marjeorie Peleño (a Performance Major), Fred Layno (who played ensemble in Nana Rosa's 2020 run), and Janna Cortes (understudy for the role "Dalang Rosa'' in the same production).  The music was directed by Mijon Tangye. The singers included Mariella Laurel, Christian Correa, Catherine Demonteverde, Den Fajardo, Jericco Lopez, Lynette Manay, and Rozen Tabaodaja. With Johnny Maglinao rapping and Moses Cauilan providing the eerie dictator-like voiceovers for the production.

It was not a breezy process. According to director Lia de Jesus, “[Things] actually didn't go as planned. It was another version of my vision. But in a good way.” She added that internet connection problems interfered with rehearsals and that they had to devise a new system of recording. Janna Cortes adds that she had to learn the choreo by herself so that during rehearsal time, she would only have to polish her performance and receive notes. Cortes says that space was also an issue because they had to make do with the small areas they could move around. And then there was the fact that most performers and production members were students, which made time management a challenge.

Directing the sound was also a challenge. This production, after all, was a reimagined version of Gloc 9’s “Payag,” made to suit the current political climate. It took Mijon Tangye, the music director, a lot of hard work and patience listening to get the sound right. She would listen to the original song twenty times a day. That was how she realized that the laid-back nature of the song, though beautiful, wouldn’t fit the overall theme of the performance.

“I wanted it [the song] to feel urgent,” says Tangye. “I wanted people to think about what it is we are allowing ourselves to happen. ‘BAKIT PUMAPAYAG TAYO?’ Especially in the climax, with all the ad-libbing and echoing of ‘Bakit pumapayag ako,’ and how it is being reiterated so many times, I wanted people to act upon this question.”

In the end, everything was worth it. There were over a thousand views and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. “It really warms my heart because all the hard work we put in is received in a good light,” says de Jesus. Tangye is also thankful for the audience reaction to the hard work of everyone in the team.  “I can't wait to make more projects to further educate and inspire other aspiring enthusiasts within the realm of arts!” she says.

 WATCH “PAYAG” a rendition of Gloc-9’s original by Quaranteatro, here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=3234237066690232&extid=IkRwnbFDfq1u2Edc

Directed by Lia de Jesus

Music Direction by Mijon Tangye

Video Editing by Nina Montemayor

 Person in photo: Mijon Tangye

Blog by Carmel Ilustrisimo

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Fath ‘Ali Shah and Miran Shah, Two Holy Men, Payag, c. 1635-1640, Harvard Art Museums: Drawings

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, The Stuart Cary Welch Collection, Gift of Edith I. Welch in memory of Stuart Cary Welch Size: 15 x 18.5 cm (5 7/8 x 7 5/16 in.) Medium: Gray-black ink on beige paper

The Goddess Bhairavi Devi with Shiva by Payag, Islamic Art

Medium: Opaque watercolor and gold on paper

Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 2011 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY