BTECH revives its Performing Arts Society

By Felina Gail Mar

After four years of inactivity, the BTECH Performing Arts Society came back full-force with a series of regional and national performances featuring traditional Filipino dances.

Led by BTECH alumni Roberto L. Amor and Marie Michaela T. Lising, along with longstanding adviser of the organization Mr. Emerson Perez, the group has delivered three performances of La Jota so far. In April 2021, the pair recorded their first La Jota Sevillana in front of the St. Augustine Parish Church which was presented at the Quincentennial Lecture Series organized by Mabalacat City College. College Administrator Atty. Robert John I. Donesa delivered a lecture on Rereading and Retelling Magellan’s 1521 Arrival in the Philippines with a Bisaya Worldview at the same event.

The Performing Arts Society went national in May 2021 as they delivered a group performance of La Jota Sevillana for the National Heritage Month 2021 celebration organized by the Association of Local Colleges and Universities in partnership with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. It was for this event that college students Erwin V. del Castillo, Kharl B. Ramos, Jennelyn V. Fontaron, and Kyla A. Labnao along with senior high school students Mark John C. De Guzman and Shane Zyler R. Piangco were invited to join.

Their latest invitation was for the Baliuag Buntal Inauguration of Officers organized by JCI Baliuag on June 19 2021, where they performed La Jota Quirino with castanets. The group is optimistic about the sustainability of their newfound lineup, seeing as the members all share the same passion for both the artform of dancing and the cultural preservation advocacy that they promote.