USC Theater Guild marks 35th year, puts focus on child pornography

CEBU, Philippines - In line with its 35-year tradition of espousing social realistic plays that target to educate and enlighten its audience, the University of San Carlos-Theatre Guild (USC-TG) will be presenting another production that tackles one of the rampant social ills—child pornography.

 Titled “Piring” (blindfold), the play will be a reflective portrayal of how poverty and parental influence greatly affects a child, driving them to peddle their innocence at such a young age. What’s worse, this form of exploitation has been made easier for even the poorest kids to enter into because of the proliferation of internet cafes that charge very low rates for a few hour’s access.

 “People make light of child pornography, little realizing that sexually explicit photographs or video are permanent images of a child’s rape, and people are cashing in everytime the video or photograph is viewed,” says a quote from Arnie Trinidad, author of Child Pornography in the Philippines and sociologist in the University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies.

 Revered as the oldest and most established university-based theater company in the Visayas and Mindanao, USC-TG had previously touched on the subjects of graft and corruption, prostitution, drugs, the slow wheels of our justice system, and other socio-political diseases that continue to plague our country.

 In a press briefing at the Cafe Laguna Terraces attended by the whole cast and crew, they gave an overview of the play’s plot.

 The story will tell us that, no matter how we look at them, children are children, and there’s nothing else they would want in life other than their loving family. It is along this line that the play hopes to propagate and wield the child’s basic and fundamental rights: the right to education, a healthy environment, and the right to live and be loved.

 It will start in a casa where the audience will hear a 13-year-old girl being ordered to strip naked in front of a computer web cam for profit. It will be raided by a group of policemen who will take all the abused children to a government facility for protection and refuge. One of those children is named Perlas.

 The curtains will then open with an affluent and posh engagement party. Here the audience will be introduced to Anne, one of the main characters of the story, a licensed nurse and a graduate student mastering in Social Work. As part of their thesis and under Dr. Lim’s supervision, Anne will be tasked to observe and investigate Perlas’ life. The first meeting will not be fruitful as Perlas resists opening up to Anne, and as the latter finds it hard to understand the predicament of Perlas.

 As the play will unfold, Anne will eventually be able to appreciate some things in her life and realize that her true purpose is pursuing social work. While Perlas will tell not only her story, but the stories of real people that are seldom untold and covered.

 Directed and written by Loyd Sato, his inspiration for “Piring” stems from the fact that he was active in the anti-child pornography advocacy here in Cebu and was moved by news accounts that a couple of children a few years back committed suicide because of poverty.

 “Piring is not only a play but a statement of the things that are happening that we fail to see or try to deny. The title is a direct testament of what we are right now—blindfolded,” explained Sato, an Anthropology graduate of USC. He was with the theater guild when he was in college and is now recognized as an honorary member. During his stay with USC-TG, Sato directed major productions starting with “Ang Paglilitis ni Mang Serapio”, “Halok sa Tarantula”, “Dos Por Dos”, “Bahid” and “Rehas.”

 He added: “We will present what seems to be the most unlawful and unacceptable treatment to a child. Each character in the story symbolizes different personalities in our society today and what they can do to resolve this ongoing problem in our country.”

 Playing the lead characters are Bea Susana Joy Satorre and Ansel Eve Ancajas alternating as Anne; Judyly Cullo and Honey Frances Gitamondoc alternating as Perlas. The rest of the cast include Justin Benedict Lo, Danica Louise Duero, Michael John Calo, Johannes Bernard Bagsican, Jissa Saludar, Aiko Miyuki Aninon and Princess Dawn Enriquez.

It will have a two-day run, September 11 and 12, at SM City Cebu Cinema One. Priced at P130, tickets can be purchased by calling 253-1000 local 185.