With 50 years under their tutu, Ballet Philippines has a plethora of stories to tell. Hand in hand with the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), the country's most renowned dance company for ballerinas and danseurs nationwide has put onstage not just wonderful choreographic shows, but also amazing talents that prove that art really does course through the veins of a Filipino.

*Ballet Philippines Swan Lake Performance | Image by Justin Alonte*

"It's been a journey," muses Alice Reyes, who is not only the current Artistic Director for Ballet Philippines* — she was actually the one who put together the first CCP summer dance workshop. From there, the National Artist for Dance worked on building this cultural institution, little by little, show per show, dancer per dancer. "When we started, there was no YouTube, there were no handheld units. We had to share as much information as we could to the dancers and they also learned via tours, exposure when they went out to Europe and the States and Asia. So that was very important.

"Today, you have very well-informed artists. I was telling my lunchmate that in the beginning, I was called Alicia Mondragon," she continues, laughing. "Because I said this is not a democracy, this is a dictatorship, you have to listen to me! But now I listen to them because their exposure is so broad."

Exposure and awareness to more elements, indeed, made not just ballet but all the other forms of art even more interesting. Creativity begets creativity, and this is proven when two art forms are combined. And to celebrate their past five decades of dance, CCP President Margie Moran has thought of the best art form to marry with Ballet Philippines' grace and poise: fashion.

CCP President, former BP President, and head chairperson of the anniversary gala, Margie Mora — *Margie Moran | Image by Geremy Pintolo*

And this is how, on September 29, the Ballet Philippines 50th Anniversary Gala Fashion Show will be held at the Marriott Hotel Grand Ballroom. A "combination of the classic and the contemporary," the show will feature dancers performing Alden Lugnasin's Swan Lake-inspired ballet and a runway filled with models in couture designed by Filipino designer for the stars, Michael Cinco.

*Michael Cinco’s innate creativity and masterful techniques have catapulted him to the front ranks of fashion.*

"I'm [actually] honored to present a 50-piece collection for the 50th anniversary of Ballet Philippines." Cinco enthusiastically says. When I was approached by Ms. Universe Margie Moran [...], I had an idea that my inspiration [would] be Swan Lake. I think it's one of the most beautiful ballets I have ever seen; I watched it 15 years ago in New York."

Both the Dubai-based designer and the head chairperson of the anniversary gala were very happy to recount the story of how they met in 2017. The two share that they spent Parisian afternoons, and soon enough, idea after idea just kept on pouring.

Michael Cinco creations — *Michael Cinco is best known for his fabulous couture gowns.*

"Michael's works reach for perfection; Ballet Philippines reach for perfection," Moran declares.

"The collection will be brought from Dubai to [the] Philippines. And I'm glad [and] very proud it's all made by Filipinos," adds Cinco.

One of the ballerinas performing at the gala fashion show is the current principal dancer for Ballet Philippines, Denise Parungao. Recently invited to be a guest artist at the 2019 Okamoto International Ballet Festival in Japan, Parungao started out as one of the company's scholars in 2010. This initiative remains alive today. In fact, the company kicked off its 50th anniversary celebration with a fundraising concern for the benefit of the Ballet Philippines Dance School scholars.

"We are in competition in schools ran by our own former ballet members," Reyes says. "[This July,] there are 35 schools and companies, owned, operated, produced, ran by former members of Ballet Philippines staging what we're calling a homecoming dance festival. 35 schools in 2 productions. That's quite an output from the company. We're very proud to have produced so many schools, so many companies. We have sent dancers to Germany, to the States, who are coming back to perform."

This year's anniversary is expected to be a spectacle like no other. Aside from the fashion show and the fundraising concert, the 50th season of Ballet Philippines will feature many of the favorites in the company's repertoire. Opening on August 30, Swan Lake will be staged as BP's 50th Anniversary Gala Show and will feature two guest artists from the Mariinsky Ballet.

Despite their many milestones, Ballet Philippines vows that their task to educate the Filipino people about the beauty of art through dance is far from over.

"There is still a lot of work to do," smiles Reyes.

Originally written for Ballet Philippines, published on LoopMe Philippines in 2019
*In 2020, Alice Reyes stepped down from her Artistic Director role in BP and founded her own dance company, Alice Reyes Dance Philippines.

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