World Theater Day 2012

For World Theater Day this year, John Malkovich (award-winning stage director but better known for his Oscar-nominated film roles) issued this message:

“I’m honored to have been asked by the International Theatre Institute ITI at UNESCO to give this greeting commemorating the 50th anniversary of World Theatre Day. I will address my brief remarks to my fellow theatre workers, peers and comrades.

“May your work be compelling and original. May it be profound, touching, contemplative, and unique. May it help us to reflect on the question of what it means to be human, and may that reflection be blessed with heart, sincerity, candor, and grace. May you overcome adversity, censorship, poverty and nihilism, as many of you will most certainly be obliged to do. May you be blessed with the talent and rigor to teach us about the beating of the human heart in all its complexity, and the humility and curiosity to make it your life’s work. And may the best of you — for it will only be the best of you, and even then only in the rarest and briefest moments — succeed in framing that most basic of questions, ‘how do we live?’ Godspeed.”

Theater is leading the way among all the arts in responding quickly and directly to the challenges of today’s world, such as climate change and ethnic conflict, as well as reminding everyone of the eternal verities of love and truth. Malkovich’s message encourages theater artists (as well as all artists) to return to basics. Why theater? Why art? Why life?

World Theater Day this year is doubly significant for Philippine theater artists because its global launch was held right here in the Philippines, at the Department of Foreign Affairs last Wednesday, in the middle of a weeklong festival of UNESCO-related theater events.

At the launch, President Noynoy Aquino and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova delivered messages extolling the art of theater.

Aquino praised the Philippine Center of the International Theatre Institute (ITI) and the UNESCO Earthsavers Dream Center for, among other things, their efforts “to raise awareness and appreciation of the wealth, diversity, and beauty of the arts, particularly the vibrant world of the theater.” Aquino noted that “Philippine theater has a strong tradition of serving as a vehicle for social commentary” and “has proved to be a powerful tool for the discernment of the critical issues of contemporary society: human rights, armed conflict, women’s issues, to name a few.”

Bokova said that “theatre has the power to move, inspire, transform and educate in ways that no other art form can. Every theatre performance represents a unique moment in time that is shared between stage actors and their audience. This human immediacy gives theatre a unique capacity to influence public awareness and perceptions. This is theatre’s power to vehicle strong messages, to question, and to heal.”

“On the occasion of this golden anniversary,” said Bokova, “I wish to highlight the special role of culture. New approaches to sustainable development will be effective only if they are sensitive to local identities, values and world views — in short, if they put people at their centre. The United Nations General Assembly has recognized the important role that culture plays in development.”

She added, “Culture is our ultimate renewable energy, a source of knowledge and innovation that is an essential drive for sustainable development. We have here all the key words for fostering a dialogue that recognizes the intricate links between biological diversity and cultural diversity, and the role of human creativity for transforming our societies.”

She quoted playwright Vaclav Havel, who said, “If we are to change our world view, images have to change. The artist now has a very important job to do.”

Theater’s role in creating images that change people and ultimately change the world is exemplified by the local run of the musical “Sound of Music” at Newport. Although it looks like a simple entertaining way to spend an evening, the play carries a serious political message, based not on a mere fantasy by a playwright, but on a real event that defined much of the twentieth century.

Next time you hum “The hills are alive with the sound of music,” you might want to think of two interrelated issues — that of the rights of people under totalitarian rule and the right of the earth to be filled with music. Those are the two central concerns of theater today all over the world — human rights and the environment. That World Theater Day was launched in the Philippines is a tribute to the success of Filipino theater artists in creating synergy among political, social, environmental, educational, and artistic fields of struggle.

Congratulations to Cecile Guidote Alvarez, a member of ITI’s Executive Council and president of ITI’s Cultural Identity and Development Committee, who led and managed last week’s events, together with Philippine ITI chair Vilma Labrador and board members Fray Paulo Casurao and Gigi Velarde David.

Thanks are due to the generous individuals who helped, such as Vice President Jejomar Binay, DepEd Superintendent Ponciano Menguito, KWF’s Jose Laderas Santos, CCP President Raul Sunico, NCCA Executive Director Emelita Almosara, South Korea’s Duk Hyung Yoo, and UNESCO’s Hubert J. Gijzen, and corporate or agency sponsors, such as DENR, DFA, DOT, DZRH, PUP, UNACOM, Chowking, Emilio Aguinaldo College, Globe, National Book Store, and Papa John’s.