Well this is a super late post, apologies for that! The suw(h)at team has been busy the last few weeks with orders, Criss-Crossings, the CIS Christmas Bazaar, and our limited time offer: CHOOSE your 5 for 500 promo.
Now, we're back to blogging and this post covers an event that happened on November (talk about late, right?) from our friends at ScissorlipS and The HeadquarterZ: the Almost Poets Society launch!
I've personally been to the venue before as it regularly hosts art and music events like designubec but I've never been early enough to these events to actually appreciate the decor. I mean the place is also a mini-gallery! With work from local artists lining the walls. Way to promote local guys, plus points from me.
We had a bunch of young talents grace the stage that night. Hana Regis, rocking the ukelele with her whimsy voice that I instantly fell in love with. She performed a few original compositions that I really liked. The fact that it had an easygoing feel but meant so much more really drew me in.
Tara Prieto came up next with her poetry reading, starting off with her own composition following it with a piece by one of her favorite poets. This is the first time I've ever witnessed a poetry reading in my life and it was awesome that Tara baptized me per se. She was quirky and funny and very passionate: from introducing herself on stage to doing the reading.
We then had Jewel Villaflores grace the stage both as a singer and poet, performing four(?) times in a row. She is also a member of Vispop and the singer of Duyog! I screamed inside a bit when I heard her sing as I didn't really know who she was until I heard her voice. What kind of fan am I, huh? Not a very good one apparently haha.
Dwight and Astrid were hands down the most intense performers of the night for me. A lot of their compositions hit me right in the gut with themes such as acceptance, love, and the struggle of being yourself in a society that dictates otherwise. The depth of their performance really moved me at some points and a section of Dwight's even brought me to tears for a while. Would listen to them again 10/10.
Juanita and Ba Nana's performances easily land a soft spot for me along with Hana's. I specifically like the fact that a portion of Ba Nana's piece mentioned her gaped teeth which I thought was really cute. Going up on stage to essentially bare a part of themselves to a crows is something that I think is really brave. Good on you, ladies!
I unfortunately had to leave early as I live a few ways off from the venue, but nevertheless the event was something I won't ever forget. It changed my perception of poetry and the art of the spoken word, it gave me a new perspective on how people think, and ultimately was a good way to spend the night! I'm looking forward to more events like these from the cebuano creative community and perhaps have collaborations in the future. Who knows? suw(h)at might just cook something up for these creatives ( ͡° ͜Ê– ͡°)
