The Kuratsa

The Kuratsa is highly favored by the Waray people of the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. Strictly speaking, The Kuratsa must be done the amenudo; that is, only one couple dances it at a time. the Kuratsa is however, very different in the manner of execution to the Mexican counterpart. Even the "basic" Kuratsa music is not based on Mexican or even Spanish melodies but just bolero-inspired lilting music. A very interesting dance caught up the eyes of the beholder. Philippine dance researchers, however, point either to the Kigal and the Bikal as the 'ascendant' of the Kuratsa. The Kigal (spelled "Quigal" in early Spanish writings on Samar culture and lifeways) is a sort battle-of-sexes couple dance that imitate mating birds. The Kigal is in fact called by another name: Binanug or Kiglun (Kigalun?) according to a 17th century Samarnon dictionary by Jesuit missionary to Samar, Fr. Alcazar. It is interesting that banug is the Waray word for the 'hawk'.

Tinikling

large bamboo poles. The tinikling dance is one of the most popular and well-known of traditional Philippine dances.[1] The tinikling is a pre-Spanish dance from thePhilippines that involves two people beating, tapping, and sliding bamboo poles on the ground and against each other in coordination with one or more dancers who step over and in between the poles in a dance. The name is a reference to birds locally known as tikling, which can be any of a number of rail species; the term tinikling literally means "tikling-like."[2] Tinikling involves five steps; during the first four steps, the dancers dance opposite each other, and during the last step, they start from the same side of the poles. The bamboo is also used as a percussive instrument as it is banged against the ground (or a piece of wood to make it easier to hold) and each other in a pattern. The bamboo has to be closed hard enough to make a sound, and the dancers must be quick enough to not get their foot (or feet) caught. As the dance continues, the banging of the bamboo becomes faster and harder, the sound of the clashing bamboo and the quickness of feet demonstrated by the dancers thrilling and awing the crowd. In the United States, this dance had been altered into a four-beat rhythm to adjust to popular music. In some cases, it has been used in conjunction with traditional Filipino martial arts to demonstrate fleetness of foot and flow of movement.[3] The dance originated in Leyte among the Visayan islands in the central Philippines as an imitation of the tikling bird dodging bamboo traps set by rice farmers. The dance imitates the run over tree branches, or dodge bamboo traps set by rice farmers.

pandanggo oasiwas

Pandanggo or Pandanggo sa ilaw literally means the 'Fandango with the Light' in English language. And yes from the name itself, this dance is that dance that involved the manipulation of the lights. This dance is from the Lubang Island, Mindoro. The term 'pandanggo' which means 'fandanggo' in the Spanish language is actually dance that is characterized by marking time with the use of clack of castanets, the snapping of the fingers and the stomping of the feet in the triple-time rhythm. The person that performs this graceful dance is often called as the 'pandanggera'. The 'pandanggera' then dances holding three oil lamps which are called as the 'tinghoy'. There is another version of this dance, and the dance resembles the steps that are performed by the dancers of the 'pandanggo'. This other version of the dance is called the 'Oasiwas' and this dance has its origins in Lingayen in Pangasinan. This town in the province is known for its fishing industry and their version of the 'pandanggo' is related to the fishing industry. Right after their good catch, the fishermen in this town will usually celebrate by drinking wine and by dancing, and by swinging and circling with the lighted lamps on the hands of the dancers. The swinging and the circling moves of the dancers gave the name 'Oasiwas' which in the local dialect is known as 'swinging'.

Subli dance
Subli is the dance portion of a devotion performed in honor of the Mahal na Poong Santa Cruz, a large crucifix of anubing wood with the face of the sun in silver at the center. The icon was discovered in the early decades of Spanish rule in what is now the town of Alitagtag, Batangas. It is the patron of many towns in the area, notably the ancient town of Bauan, Batangas. the subli dance are performed by (3) three boys and (3) girls courtship... The subli consists of a long sequence of prayers in verse, songs, and dances, performed in a fixed sequence. The verse recounts the first journey of the early manunubli ( subli performer)through the fields, hills, and rivers of Batangas in search of the miraculous cross. Sections of verse are sung to a fixed punto or skeletal melody, which may be elaborated on in a different way by a different subli troupe. About five of these punto are used in a complete subli performance. These sections may be divided further into various fixed dance patterns involving one, two or eight pairs of men and women. These numbers seem to be the norm in Bauan, although other towns may have formations involving three pairs at a time. The stances, gestures, and movements of the male dancers are freewheeling and dramatic, consisting of leaping, striking the ground with kalaste (wooden bamboo clappers held in both hands), and other movements suggesting the martial arts. The women circle on half-toe, performing the talik (small refined gestures with wrists and fingers), their fingers grazing the smallbrimmed hats and alampay (triangular scarf worn loosely over the shoulder)that are the essential parts of their costume. They dance and sing, to the rhythm beaten out by a stick on the tugtugan, a

goblet-shaped, footed drum of langka wood with a head made of iguana skin. -E.R. Mirano According to Miguela "Mila" Maquimot, there once lived a couple in Dingin, Alitagtag. The husband was of the jealous type and a drunkard. The wife was the one who mainly did the work, one of which was fetching water from a well to the water jar wherein they drank water from. One time, the husband went home drunk and there was no water in the big water jar so the wife went to the well to get some.

Sakuting dance
The sakuting dance, originally performed solely by boys, portrays a mock fight using sticks. A sakuting stick is striped or bamboo and is about 1 feet long and tapered at the end, like a candle. Its original use was for combat training. During the playful folk dance, two teams, one representing each side, circle and clash bamboo sticks in a gentle imitation of martial arts sparring. Its dance form is the comedia (a theatrical dance, also called moromoro) and features a battalla (choreographed skirmish). Sakuting (pronounced seh-KOOH-tihng) comes from the province of Abra, home to the Ilocano people native to the lowlands and the Tingguian mountain tribes. The Spanish established a garrison to protect Ilocanos who converted to Christianity, and their capital city, Bangued, from raids by the mountain tribes. Introduced by Spanish missionaries as religious ritual, the sakuting dance portrays this struggle between the lowland Christians and the non-Christian mountain people. Sakuting's origins, however, appear much older.

Sinkil dance
The Singkl originated from the Maranao people who inhabit the shores of Lake Lanao. It is derived from a story in theDarangen, the Maranao interpretation of the ancient Indian epic, the Ramayana. The name of the dance itself means "to entangle the feet with disturbing objects such as vines or anything in your path". It is a popular dance performed during celebrations and other festive entertainment. Originally only women, particularly royalty, danced the Singkl, which serves as either a conscious or unconscious advertisement to potential suitors. The lead dancer, in the role of Putri Gandingan (the Darangen name for Sita), graciously step in and out of closing bamboos poles arranged in either a parallel, rectangular, or criss-cross fashion while manipulating either apir (fans), mosala (scarves), or even just their bare hands. A kulintang and agung ensemble always accompanies the dance. While often erroneously referred to by non-Maranaos as a "Muslim dance", the Singkl is in fact secular in nature, performed by the Ummah communities of the Maranao and Maguindanao. Initially, the dance was performed with just one pair of bamboo poles, eventually adopting the use of two criss-crossing pair.

Banga festival dance

The Banga Festival is a week long event celebrated in the city of Balanga, Bataan. It is said that the name Balanga, which is the capital of Bataan, came from the word banga, the tagalong term for pot used in cooking. The Banga Festival is celebrated to remind the Balangueos of their humble beginnings. The festival is celebrated alongside the feast of St. Joseph in April 28. During the month of April there are lots of activities lined up in the city of Balanga. The main activities for the celebration to be held in the last week of April are posted in the plaza. The celebrations include beauty pageant in search of the Mutya ng Balanga, Battle of the bands, San Miguel Beer night, celebrity night, and street dancing competition. The street dancing competition is open to the different barangays in Balanga. The theme of the street dancing is the use of pots or banga and the different livelihood in Bataan. On the final day of the festival there will be bands that will march all over the city. There are also other people who will be dancing after the band. This practice called sambale is similar to street dancing. However, there will be no required unity of movements as the people dance. Most of these people will carry and wave leaves as they dance to the music. There will also be booths and bargain shops in different places in Balanga. In these booths, anyone can find accessories and clothes. The products that are common in Bataan can be seen in different stall, too

Mazurka Boholana
Mazurka Boholana is a Spanish-inspired ballroom dance from the Bohol province of the Philippines. The country was under the rule of Spain for more than three hundred years, during which time local culture was markedly influenced. Although the mazurka is the Polish national dance, it was wildly popular throughout Europe in the 19th century and even in colonized lands overseas. The Philippine dance is ordinarily performed by men and women partners. dances derived from Spanish influences, such as the Mazurka Boholana, are classified as Sayawing Maria Clara (Maria Clara Dances). Maria Clara is the main female character in the Spanishera novel Noli Me Tangere, written by Filipino national hero Jose Rizal. Maria Clara also refers to a women's style of clothing popular during Spanish times, which is worn as traditional Filipino costume even today. Filipina performers of dances like the Mazurka Boholana each wear a Maria Clara

Pasiguin
Pasiguin is a frolicking dance representing fishes getting out from torn fishnets, locally called sibot in Capiz. The dance is among the discoveries of dance researcher Petronila Suarez. It was presented by Crisostomo Barerra during the 1979 Annual Philippine Folk Dance Workshop held at the Folk Arts Theater in the CCP Complex. There are misconceptions that the dance has to do with the Pasig River, but it does not. This dance is about a fisherman trying to catch bangus, shrimps and sugpo with the use of a sibot (fish net), not knowing it has big hole in it. This gives him a difficult time because the fish keeps slipping out of the net. The movements of the girls imitate those of the bangus, shrimps and sugpo.

Pandanguiado Buraweno (Visayan)

Pandanguiado is a popular festival dance in the province of Leyte and Samar. This particular dance originated in Burauen, Leyte and is usually performed by prominent and skillful dancers at big social functions and important gatherings. According to the old residents of Pericohon, a sitio between LaPaz and Burauen, many, many years ago a certain Filipino general stationed in that plce invited some people from the town and barrios around to a Christmas eve celebration. In that gathering, a cuople from Burauen, hailed as notable dancers., were requested to give a special dance. It was an interesting and colorful dance that they danced with much spirit, altogether different from the dances the people from the locality were used to seeing. It was well liked by all and from that time on it became popular, not only in that place but also in other towns oof Leyte and Samar.