“ANG BAGONG HARANA” - An Ode To Mother Nature Set On Oct. 18 – 28

Every Filipino, young and old, should watch this! I tell you, it will make you proud of your heritage!

Press Release:

In the midst of so many foreign pop acts and musical productions from Broadway and the West End, one small theatrical effort made waves last year. It was a revue featuring traditional and contemporary Filipino songs, sung not by the established legends of Classical singing, but by a troupe of young, relatively unknown, but dedicated classical singers. The show was the Philippine Opera Company's “Ang Bagong Harana”.

What was the secret of this small revue's success?

“'Ang Bagong Harana' was envisioned as love song to our country," says Karla Gutierrez, who heads the Philippine Opera Company. "We wanted to show audiences that there is so much wealth that modern Filipinos can mine from our traditional and contemporary music. In this age of globalization, it is all the more crucial for us to know who we are and what we have that we can call ‘Pinoy’. A lot of performers may say that we are the best in the world. But we wanted to go a step further and prove it by using our own traditional and contemporary material. And we wanted to showcase young singers who have committed themselves to classical singing and to our traditional material.  And it was a show that had the audience who came to see it for six nights at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater at RCBC Plaza, weeping and applauding with joy.”

With all the warm response it generated, the Philippine Opera Company was all the more convinced that there is a hungry audience for this ‘brand of entertainment’ that reconnects Filipinos to their souls. It's the one thing we cannot face the future without.

So, a second re-run of the show was presented last June 2012.

Due to the show’s increased popularity, “Ang Bagong Harana ” took a provincial tour at the sell-out special concert held in Silliman University, Dumaguete City last July 2012.

“More and more calls and inquiries kept pouring in at the offices of POC requesting for a third re-run which is why POC is bringing back the show in it's original form, with most of the original cast. It is a difficult effort to try and do something truly Filipino nowadays still bearing in mind the continuing influx of ‘foreign acts and shows’ until December 2012.

So now, here’s your chance to catch the third re-run of Philippine Opera Company’s critically-acclaimed Filipino musical production “ ANG BAGONG HARANA ” from October 18 until October 28 at 8 p.m. with matinees at 3:30 p.m. on October 20, 21, 27 and 28 at the Carlos P. Romulo Theater, RCBC Plaza, Makati City.

Originally conceived and directed by award-winning writer/director Floy Quintos, “Ang Bagong Harana” shall still carry the original repertoire which showcases the best works of noted Filipino composers from different music genres --- Nicanor Abelardo, Ryan Cayabyab, Willy Cruz, Francisco Santiago, Antonio Molina, Resti Umali, George Canseco, Ernani Cuenco, Levi Celerio, Jose Estrella, Constancio De Guzman and Felipe de Leon, to name a few.

For the October show, audiences will be treated to a brand new suite in the repertoire -- An Ode to Mother Nature. Over the past months, our country has been beset by calamities and disasters of magnifying proportions. And with these comes a clarion call for Filipinos to open their hearts and minds by seriously helping in the various preservation programs geared towards our Mother Nature before its too late. Quite a serious note, yet, translated into a song, it is very meaningful and heart-wrenching.

Two OPM compositions will be interpreted with a fresher mood and tone. Both songs shall also symbolize Philippine Opera Company’s advocacy to help preserve our Mother Nature.

The company of ten singers is made up of theater actors and singers Karla Gutierrez, Aizel Prietos, Charley Magalit, Janine Santos, Marian Santiago, Arlynne Tecson, Lawrence Jatayna, Noel Rayos, Nazer Salcedo, Marvin Gayramon and Al Gatmaitan with the special participation of the Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group. Most have appeared in plays and musicals. None of them are what you would call "mainstream". And that is precisely what makes their performances all the more poignant and powerful.

The songs you will hear in “Ang Bagong Harana” are our legacy and our best gift to the world. In singing them again, we say to the world, “This is who we are …..  this is our heritage …. and this is the musical journey all Filipinos should take”.

For ticket sales, please call Philippine Opera Company at 822-9609 or 0917-5272880 or TicketWorld at 891-9999 or Like Philippine Opera Company on Facebook.