Like in years past, thousands of visitors trooped to the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) along Roxas Boulevard in Pasay City last 1-3 February 2019 for the much-awaited Pasinaya. The annual three-day affair features workshops and performances from hundreds of performers all over the country. For a minimum donation of P50, guests can attend all the performances they wish to go to, with an inconvenient caveat to be discussed later.
Note that performers come from all spectrum: from amateur school-based troops to premier internationally renowned groups, such as the Philippine Madrigal Singers, Bayanihan Dance Troupe, Ballet Philippines, and the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra, among others.
Since its inception, Pasinaya has grown by leaps and bounds. The third day, in particular, draws thousands of visitors trooping to the sprawling CCP Complex, eager to take in as much art as they could.
Democratization of art
Therein lies the beauty of events like Pasinaya: It democratizes art. Pasinaya makes available to the general public performances and exhibits by artists that wouldn't otherwise be accessible to the masses on ordinary days due to things like prohibitive ticket costs and the inherent elitism that usually attends such performances.
After all, in a country where more than half of the population self-identify as poor, there isn't really much of an opportunity for regular folks to spare some of their time and shell out thousands of pesos just to catch an artistic performance. Which is why Pasinaya, with its free for all format, is such a wonderful event for everybody across all economic classes and educational backgrounds to come sit together and breathe art, at least for a day.
But along with Pasinaya's extreme popularity comes the downsides.
Downsides to popularity
First, Pasinaya is so popular, there is hardly any space anymore to move around in. The overall experience is somehow adversely affected by the fact that there are just too many people present wanting to watch and hear the same performances, notably CCP's resident artists. Because of limited seats (and the crappy "VIP ballers" option, to be discussed later), many people are unable to get in the venues.
Second, many of the attendees tend to gravitate towards popular artistic groups. This leaves out many other talented but otherwise unknown artists performing in the same venue. This is a shame, really, because Pasinaya should be an opportunity for all artists to be able to showcase their talents, regardless of their degrees of fame or popularity.
Third, Pasinaya offers VIP ballers to guests who can afford them. These ballers cost six times more than the minimum amount of donation required of each guest. The perk? Wearers of these VIP ballers have the advantage of skipping lines and availing of the best seats in any of CCP's various venues.
When you think about it, these VIP ballers are antithetical to the very concept of democratization of art that Pasinaya purports to promote. Here, only those with cash to spare are able to afford these ballers and avail of the perks that come with them, leaving the vast majority of attendees to battle with each other for all the shitty leftover seats. Not only does this set-up not make any sense, it is also patently discriminatory and elitist. Why can't everybody have the same chance to have a premier seat regardless of the amount of money donated?
Fourth, many of the attendees are busloads of young people herded to the venues without any supervision or guidance. When thousands of rowdy teenagers gather at a single place, you can expect a riot of some sort to take place. Not only are these teens running around, shouting, and essentially tearing the place down, they are also ruining the overall vibe for everybody else. The problem? They are not hooked enough.
Art decorum and etiquette are superficial and elitist and somehow do not make any sense for people too young to understand that clapping and heckling in the middle of a choir performance is rude and tasteless, but at the very minimum, these young people should be taught to behave -- according to elders.
Generational gap
Of course a lot has been said of the huge difference in sensibilities between those belonging to older generations and the so-called millennials and digital natives. Nowhere is this generational gap more apparent than in the way these two groups appreciate art. On the one hand, you have a group wanting to stick to traditional rules of decorum, and on the other hand, you have a group with a mindless disregard for stuffy rules. This clash is very clear in Pasinaya.
Organizers of Pasinaya should therefore recognize that since much of the attendees are young people, then the event should not be structured in a way that does not conform to the way these young people appreciate art. Sit-down venues where everybody is expected to behave and keep quiet throughout performances simply do not work for restless and easily bored kids. For young people, the name of the game is interactivity, digital connectivity, social media-acceptability, and relatability.
In all, Pasinaya continually presents a notable opportunity for the general public to appreciate art. However, organizers of the event should reach out to their audiences and mold their message in a palatable format. Most of all, the VIP ballers shtick should be thrown out for good.