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What’s Hot this Weekend

EVENTS

Robinsons Land Corp. will host the “City Savor” food bazaar at The Trion Towers in Bonifacio Global City on Dec. 19, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m . City Savor’s list of participating food establishments include El Chupacabra, Mac & Jac, Bald Baker, Baguettini, Chef Adrian Cuenca, Baits, Sabao, Bag Wings, Hillside Cafe, Global Beer Exchange, Buccino’s Ice Cream Experiments, Earth Desserts, Saddam’s Shawarma, Boom’s Cold Brew Coffee, Liquido Maestro, Jertie’s Kitchen, Karnitas Korner, The Juice Stand, Truck Bun, Juice Bar, ChocoATBP, Pipino Vegetarian, Snow Shack and Cannoli & Co, among others.

EXHIBITS

Artist Jonathan Rañola’s Under Tall Shady Trees is on view throughout December at Art Elements Asian Gallery, 3rd Floor, SM Aura Premier Mall, Bonifacio Global City. The exhibit features his figurative portraits in acrylic and pen set amidst flora and fauna on canvas and on wood. For details, call 519-9683 or logon to artelements@surfshop.net.ph.

RE:VIEW 2015, a year-end group show, is on view at the BenCab Museum’s Gallery Indigo until Feb. 7, 2016. The show features the works of 38 artists including Leonard Aguinaldo, Virgilio Aviado, BenCab, Marina Cruz, Emmanuel Garibay, Kawayan de Guia, Winner Jumalon, Arturo Luz, Raffy Napay, Leeroy New, Ramon Orlina, Soler Santos, Rodel Tapaya, and Olan Ventura. Also on exhibit at the museum’s Print Gallery is Philippine Views, an exhibition of 18th to 19th century prints. The BenCab Museum is located at Km. 6 Asin Road, Tuba, Metro Baguio.

Kulay Diwa Gallery of Philippine Contemporary Art presents Aaron Bautista’s one-man show, Abstracting Angono’s Rustic Scenes. Mr. Bautista belongs to the third generation of Angono artists and belongs to the Neo-Angono Artists Collective, a group that has been exploring art using public spaces through contemporary means and medium. The exhibit runs until Jan. 7. For details call (632) 624-4344 or e-mail bobbit@kulay-diwa.com.

Artinformal  has several exhibit which are ongoing until Dec. 28. These are idyls by Salvador Alonday at the Main Gallery, an installation of recent works in stoneware; Rebuilding Blocks by José Santos III at The Big Room, in which he transforms and presents individual rocks into objects that show the material in all its rawness; and Mythamporphosis by Raena Abella at The Inner Room, a meditation on mythology, nostalgia, and transformation. The gallery is located at 277 Connecticut St., San Juan.

Samsung Electronics Philippines and the Yuchengco Museum present a tribute exhibition to National Artist for Visual Arts Benedicto “BenCab” Cabrera who is is marking 50 years as an artist. The interactive exhibit, dubbed BenCab in Two Movements, is on view at the museum until Jan. 16.  Yuchengco Museum is located at the RCBC Plaza, Corner Ayala and Sen. Gil J. Puyat Avess., Makati City. For details e-mail info@yuchengcomuseum.org or visit http://yuchengcomuseum.org.

The Metropolitan Museum of Manila takes its turn in celebrating the 50 creative years of National Artist BenCab (Benedicto Cabrera) with a retrospective exhibition that will run until Feb. 27. The museum is located at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Complex, Roxas Blvd., Manila. For details, e-mail info@metmuseum.ph.

The Mind Museum presents A Glass of the Sea, an immersive, interactive and constantly updated exhibition on the discoveries from the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines, also dubbed as the “center of the center of marine biodiversity.” The exhibit runs until the end of the year, then will go on tour around the country. The Mind Museum is at JY Campos Park, 3rd Ave., Bonifacio Global City. For details, call 909-6463.

Galleria Duemila in partnership Greenbelt presents New Life, a public sculpture exhibition by Impy Pilapil. The exhibit runs until Feb. 28, 2016 at Greenbelt Park, Makati City. For details, call 831-9990, e-mail gduemila@gmail.com, or visit www.galleriaduemila.com.

PERFORMANCE

Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra presents the concert PPO Concert Series IV on Dec. 18, 8 p.m., at the Main Theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Roxas Blvd., Pasay City. Yoshikazu Fukumura will conduct the orchestra on a program that includes Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2 “Little Russian.” For details, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph, or call 891-9999.

Children’s show Hi-5 House of Dreams will have performances on Dec. 18 to 21 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila, Pasay City. The musical play is set during the big Hi-5 sleepover party, where, with the help of Chats the “Dream Meister,” and her magical Dream Catcher, the group journeys on some wild dream adventures. For details, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph, or call 891-9999.

The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and the Bayanihan Folk Arts Foundation present Fiesta Folkloriada 2015, on Dec. 20, 8 p.m., at the CCP Main Theater, Roxas Blvd., Pasay City. Fiest Folkloriada is an international folk dance festival that aims to promote solidarity and goodwill among participating countries, and features performing ensembles from all over the world who showcase their unique cultural heritage through folk dance and music. For details, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph, or call 891-9999.

The holiday season at Shangri-La Plaza  features a great deal of music. Voces Manila performs on Dec. 21, 5 p.m., at the Grand Atrium, while the all-male choral ensemble Koro Ilustrado takes over the East Wing’s East Atrium with classic and contemporary tunes on Dec. 21, 7:30 p.m. The Hail Mary the Queen Children’s Choir, best known for singing “We are All God’s Children” with Jamie Rivera, the official theme song for the Papal Visit of Pope Francis, will perform on Dec. 22, 5 p.m., at the Main Wing Grand Atrium. Soloists Arthur Manuntag and Shiela Valderrama-Martinez follow at 6:30 p.m. on the same day at the East Atrium, followed by the UE Chorale at 7:30 p.m. It is the turn of the Kilyawan Boys Choir on Dec. 27, 5 p.m. at the Main Wing, and The Executives Band will rock the East Atrium stage at 7:30 p.m. For inquiries, call 370-2500 loc. 593 or visit www.facebook.com/shangrilaplazaofficialfanpage.

Robinsons Malls nationwide will celebrate the holidays with a slew of musical performances plus entertaining shows and activities for kids. For the children, there is the Jungle Book Jive, a live show from Australia featuring Mowgli and his friends, which will have performances at Robinsons Sta. Rosa and Robinsons Place Bacolod on Dec. 19; Robinsons Place Manila, Robinsons Place Malolos, and Robinsons Fuente on Dec. 20; and Robinsons Magnolia and Novaliches on Dec. 21. Robinsons Place Lipa will host the Jungle Book Playland. Meanwhile, the Jungle Book Jive Photoland lets kids take souvenir photos of this experience at Robinsons Place Las Piñas, Robinsons Place Imus, and Robinsons Sta. Rosa. Animated mechanical displays bring children to the Winter Park and the Winter Wonderland. The animated Winter displays are running at Robinsons Place Antipolo, Pangasinan, Gensan, Dumaguete, Bacolod, and Butuan, and at Robinsons Metro East, Robinsons Ilocos, Fuente and Cybergate Cebu. The popular Giant Lantern Festival kicks off at Robinsons Starmills Pampanga on Dec. 19, with nightly shows of the Giant Lanterns held from Dec. 20-23, Dec. 25-30, and Jan. 1-6 at 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. There will also be fireworks display across the many Robinsons Malls in the country. Meanwhile, shoppers will be serenaded with the hottest hits and all-time favorite Christmas tunes by Ely Buendia (Robinsons Place Manila on Dec. 18, and Robinsons Magnolia on Dec. 19, at 6 p.m.), The Company (Robinsons Galleria on Dec. 18, at 5 p.m.), Sitti Navarro (Robinsons Place Las Piñas on Dec. 19, 5 p.m.), and Juris Fernandez (Robinsons Place Angeles on Dec. 20, at 5 p.m.).

Bonifacio Global City (BGC) literally wraps up the development in holiday cheer with larger than life gift bows to mark the season. At the heart of all of this are a series of activities and events geared towards the community. The Christmas Box Spectacular will be performed at the main stage every night, while the Wandering Minstrels sing familiar holiday tunes. A Christmas Symphony will be performed at Bonifacio High Street on Dec. 19; and there will also be performances by employees from Globe, Deutsche Bank, St. Luke’s Medical Center, the NET Group and The Mind Museum to name a few, over the holidays. Grab a Santa Hat by presenting receipts worth P2,500 from Bonifacio High Street establishments. Each hat will allow the wearer access to selected holiday activities such as Meet and Greet Santa, Santa’s Mail Station and Christmas Carriage Rides. Alternatively, a donation of P500 can get you a Santa hat as well. BGCitizens, however, need only present any proof of residence or employment to get one free Santa hat. Everyone is invited to donate gifts and wrap boxes on Saturdays of December, in a project by Fort Bonifacio Development Foundation which will deliver these presents to the children of the different barangays. For the full holiday schedule of activities, e-mail info@bgc.com.ph or visit www.bgc.com.ph and www.facebook.com/bonifacioglobalcityph.

Megaworld Lifestyle Malls has officially begun the “Season of Sharing.” There will be musical performances by: Jed Madela on Dec. 19 and X-Factor Australia Grand Winner Marlisa Punzalan on Dec. 27 at Lucky Chinatown. Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill host a performance by Marlisa Punzalan on Dec. 26. At Eastwood City, meet Santa and the Minions every weekend. Children’s play Jack and the Beanstalk and a meet-and-greet with Dibo the Gift Dragon, will be held on Dec. 27 the Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill. Grand fireworks displays will be held every weekend at 8 p.m. in Eastwood City and Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill, and 7 p.m. at Lucky Chinatown. The malls will also be holding raffles in its Gift of Joy Holiday Promo. A Volkswagen Beetle, a condominium unit at Eastwood Le Grand Tower 2, and P1 million worth of jewelry from Rustan’s Silver Vault are up for grabs for those who will spend at least P2,000 at Eastwood City, Newport City, and Lucky Chinatown, or P1,000 at Venice Piazza, Forbes Town Center, The Clubhouse at Temple Drive and Paseo Center. For details call the Megaworld Lifestyle Malls Concierge at 709-9888, 709-0888, 0917-838-0111 or visit www.megaworldlifestylemalls.com.

Bituing Walang Ningning (The Musical) has  performances at the Newport Performing Arts Theater in Resorts World Manila until January. Starring Mark Bautista, Antoinette Taus and Monica Cuenco, it is based on the famous film of the same name about an established star who finds herself competing for fame and love with a newcomer. For details, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph, or call 891-9999.

Why Disney blew up more than 30 years of Star Wars canon

WHILE the arrival of Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a new beginning for the storied franchise, it’s a painful reminder of something else: More than 30 years of novel, toy, game, and comic book tie-ins collectively known as the Star Wars Expanded Universe. In April 2014, Disney — which had purchased the series in 2012, when it bought Lucasfilm — announced that all such previous efforts would have no bearing on future Star Wars projects. It was, as Obi-Wan Kenobi might have put it, “as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.” In its place would be a new Expanded Universe, one crafted to complement Disney’s multiyear plan for the world’s most beloved space opera.

The casual viewer of a Star Wars movie may think that the only stories extant are the ones in the (now) seven films, but the Expanded Universe used George Lucas’s films as a launching pad for new narratives. As early as 1978, Kenner toy company’s action figures gave names to characters otherwise unmentioned in the movies. Who can forget Walrus Man at the Mos Eisley cantina, or Lando’s co-pilot Nien Numb — to say nothing of Sy Snoodles and the Rebo Band — in Return of the Jedi.

“I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced.” — Obi-Wan Kenobi

The original Expanded Universe was scattershot — a tabletop role-playing game here, a comic book there — but that had changed by 1991 with Timothy Zahn’s book Heir to the Empire. Many fans viewed the text as the first installment of sequels George Lucas never made. The novel reached The New York Times fiction best-sellers list.

What differentiated the Expanded Universe from such corporate-owned mythologies as Doctor Who or Battlestar Galactica was that it was not just tolerated by the creator of Star Wars but managed by him as well. “When I said [other people] could make their own Star Wars stories, we decided that, like Star Trek, we would have two universes: My universe and then this other one,” Lucas told Starlog magazine in 2005. “They try to make their universe as consistent with mine as possible, but obviously they get enthusiastic and want to go off in other directions.”

Lucasfilm licensed a slew of media that added to the adventures of Luke, Leia, and Han, as well those of as completely new characters. Eventually, more than 100 novels were written by dozens of authors, all with Lucas’s blessing. Clean as the Expanded Universe may have been, it still had inconsistencies, just as anything made by many different people would. That’s why fans were in fear after Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012.

Aside from the six movies (the original trilogy and three prequels from the last decade) and an animated series called The Clone Wars that ran from 2008 to 2014, Disney shunted everything released before April 25, 2014 to the side under the “Legends” banner, removing it from the Star Wars timeline. The company’s stated goal was “to give maximum creative freedom to the filmmakers” — J. J. Abrams in particular, who had by then signed on to direct an Episode VII.

Since then, Disney has set about creating its own expanded universe. New timeline-approved Star Wars cartoons, comic books, and video games began appearing last fall, as well as seven adult books touching on everything from the prequel films (Dark Disciple) to the gap between the trilogies (New Dawn, Tarkin, and Lords of the Sith) and the unseen moments between the first three movies (Heir to the Jedi and Battlefront: Twilight Company). Most exciting of all has been early hints as to what really happened after Return of the Jedi (Aftermath), and what will appear in the upcoming film.

The new books have been solid so far (something that couldn’t always be said about prior Expanded Universe material), and four of the titles have cracked The New York Times fiction best-sellers list so far.

That’s not to say that the original isn’t missed. “What I miss the most is that the [Expanded Universe] truly made me feel like I was entering a galaxy far, far away that was even bigger than the one I saw in the canon films and TV series,” said James Akinaka, a site administrator for the online Star Wars encylopedia, Wookieepedia. “The world-building that occurred in the [Expanded Universe] was incredible, and it will be a while before the current Star Wars continuity can reflect that.”

So the Expanded Universe may have been wiped from the canon, but it has not been forgotten. As John Jackson Miller, one of the new novels’ authors, said last year: “The thing about ‘Legends’ — and that’s the word on the cover of the previous material — legends can be true, in part or in whole.” — Bloomberg

The Five Key Decisions Made in the UN Climate Deal in Paris

ENVOYS to the United Nations (UN) climate talks handed down a 31-page document on Saturday outlining their boldest steps yet to rein in global warming. Here are the key points of the text, along with comment on why the decisions made in Paris matter:

Epson lights up Capitol Commons Park with holiday show

AS A WAY to say thanks and spread the holiday cheer — and to show off its high-brightness projectors — Epson Philippines is celebrating its first Christmas as “the brand of choice in projectors” and “the dominant projector brand in the Philippines” (according to a company press release) by doing a 3D-projection mapping show at the Capitol Commons Park in Pasig City.

Disney’s Star Wars marketing force reaches for female fans

LOS ANGELES — Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley smiles on the cover of Glamour magazine, stormtrooper necklaces are on sale at Kay Jewelers, and commercials for the new film The Force Awakens are running during Kim Kardashian’s reality TV show.

The world’s most luxurious Christmas Trees look like works of art

It’s that time of year again, when you drag home a tree, unwrap your ornaments, and schlep out to the store to buy replacement bulbs for the lights that mysteriously broke over the summer. It’s a hassle, but it’s nothing compared to what’s gone into the construction of some of the most extravagant Christmas trees on the planet.

Playing games while caught in traffic

Television

Cash Cab

Tuesdays, 8:50 p.m.

AXN

By Joseph L. Garcia, Reporter

IF YOU’VE ever raised your fist at the heavens when a cab driver has refused to take you to where you need to go, here’s something very different: a cab that will take you in and pay you money. All you have to do is answer some trivia questions. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Cash Cab.

The show’s concept originated in the United Kingdom, and incarnations of it have appeared from Brazil to Slovakia. Here in the Philippines, the cab driver asking the questions is bespectacled actor and host Ryan Agoncillo. The cab has been going around Metro Manila, with the host/driver quizzing passengers as they make their way through traffic. Each correct answer corresponds to a cash prize, while every incorrect answer constitutes a “strike.” Three strikes, or three incorrect answers, means passengers are kicked out (not literally, we hope) of the cab.

The game ends when passengers strike out or have arrived at their destination.

Passengers, according to a press release, have two “shout outs” where they can call a friend or ask a stranger for help in answering a question.

“The traffic jams here in the Philippines works both ways for the Cash Cab and for the passenger. The longer you stay in the cab, the more chances of you winning, right? Also, the longer you stay in the cab, the more chances of you striking out: so it’s a risk you have to take,” said Mr. Agoncillo during the Dec. 9 launch in Aracama restaurant.

“You can either tell me… to bring you all the way where it’s two hours from where I picked you up, or you can choose a shorter journey. My role is to make sure I bring you safely to your destination, asking you questions, but if you strike out, I’m going to pick a safe place, hopefully bright enough [and drop you off]… if you strike out,” he added.

‘You can get rich in traffic’

Judging from Mr. Agoncillo’s stories, his passengers could be anyone.

“[There were] these two married guys, who, at that point — you know, I’m just… [not sure] if their wives knew that they were out that night.” He described them as “two burly guys” with tattoos, and the pair won about P13,000 that evening said Mr. Agoncillo. After their game was over, one of them approached Mr. Agoncillo and asked for a selfie. “Para alam ng asawa ko bakit ako na-late nauwi (So my wife will know why I went home late).”

There are no maximum number of questions, said Mr. Agoncillo, and you can keep playing until you reach your destination, or until you get kicked out.

“We had a MENSA dude,” said Mr. Agoncillo. “He played us out.”

Cash Cab premieres with a double episode on Tuesday, Dec. 22, at 8:50 p.m. on AXN.

Ten exotic retreats to jump-start your fitness resolutions

THE HOLIDAYS are great and all. In December. But come January you’re going to be wishing for something a little less manic. And a little more exotic.

Star Wars: A Who’s Who

LOS ANGELES — The new Star Wars: The Force Awakens opened in theaters this week. Here is a brief description of the main characters in the saga that takes place in a fictional galaxy.

Big Oil, make way for Big Solar. The Winners and Losers in Paris

SAVING the world isn’t going to be cheap. If you sell oil, coal or old-fashioned cars, that threatens disaster. For makers of stuff like solar panels, high-tech home insulation, and efficient lighting, it’s a potential miracle.

Laugh and cry at the theater this weekend

By Jasmine Agnes T. Cruz, Reporter

THEATER

Children’s Plays for Adults

Presented by Bit by Bit Company

Ongoing until Dec. 20

PowerMac Spotlight at Circuit Makati City

Maniacal

Presented by Egg Theater Company

on Dec. 20, 2 and 7 p.m.

Pineapple Lab, 6071 Palma St,, Makati City

PLAYS abound this Christmas and one can choose from a variety of shows. If one prefers tragic stories with complex emotional arcs then head over to the PowerMac Spotlight at Circuit Makati and watch Children’s Plays for Adults. If one prefers to laugh, one can watch Maniacal, an offering from a new player in the theater scene called the Egg Theater Company.

Cry fest

Children’s Play for Adults is a twin bill of Si Maria Isabella at ang Guryon ng mga Tala (Palanca-winner Eljay Castro Deldoc’s adaptation of Dean Francis Alfar’s “Kite of Stars”) and Games People Play (written by Palanca-winner Glenn Sevilla Mas). Produced by Bit by Bit Company, both productions are imaginatively directed by Ed Lacson, Jr.

Maria Isabella is about a young woman who realizes that the only way the stargazing boy of her dreams will notice her is if she literally gets to the stars herself. She goes on a quest to get all the materials needed to build a giant kite to get her to the heavens, even if that means she’ll be searching all her life. Meanwhile, Games is about three childhood friends whose games together start out innocent, but they slowly reveal the characters’ desires and become ways for them to explore their sexual identities.

Both shows are exceptionally written, and, more than that, they have been well-conceived for the stage. For Maria Isabella, director Mr. Lacson allows one’s imagination to take flight through the use of papier-mâché puppets, shadow puppetry, and lights. For Games, his simple yet haunting set and the playwright’s creative use of blocking, brings new dimensions to the play.

Tickle your funny bones

Seems like straight plays are on the rise in a theater landscape long dominated by musicals. First came Red Turnip Theater, which vowed to do edgy English straight plays. Now it has a counterpart, Egg Theater Company, which will focus on straight plays in Filipino (original plays, translations, and adaptations).

Egg’s members are production manager Kristine Balmes (who also acts), actors Renante Bustamante, Martha Comia, and Paolo O’Hara, playwright George De Jesus III, director Mara Marasigan (who also acts), and producer Alvin Trono. Many of them have been involved in the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Tanghalang Pilipino.

This group — which boasts of 40 years of theater experience between the members — was formed in 2014. Its first project was Maniacal, De Jesus’s Palanca Award winning Filipino adaptation of Moliere’s The Learned Ladies, which was shown at the first Fringe Festival in Manila last February, then re-staged at the Opera Haus of the Philippine Opera Company. It is being staged yet again at Makati’s Pinneapple Lab. Directed by Mr. De Jesus, Maniacal features Via Antonio, Mayen Cadd, Martha Comia, Nel Gomez, Renante Bustamante, Mara Marasigan, Paolo O’Hara, and Jojo Riguerra.

Maniacal is set in present day Manila where a group of theater and film artists are rehearsing for Moliere’s Le Femmes Savant (The Learned Ladies). Drama ensues when some of the actors have to decide whether they should quit the show to be part of a Broadway musical, a diva begins making demands and dramatic admonitions, and actresses express their delusional assumptions about a co-actor.

Interesting and funny, the play mentions real local theater companies, actual Filipino theater actors and actresses, recently shown plays and musicals, and even the internal issues in certain theater companies and uses them as the butt of jokes. While these jokes are a treat for the avid theatergoer or someone who is part of the theater scene, audience members who are not might not understand them.

Egg Theater has a set of plays lined up after Maniacal. Scheduled for February is Schism, a satire about a playwright, appropriated from Moliere’s Le Misanthrope Ou L’Atrabilaire Amoureux. For April, there is the Filipino translation of The Pillowman by Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, about a fiction writer who the police interrogate because his short stories are similar to the recent child murders in their town. Next September, Egg will present a trilogy of Moliere’s plays on hypocrisy entitled Moliere PMSPraning (Le Malade Imaginaire/The Imaginary Invalid, a satire about directors), Maniacal (Le Femmes Savant/The Learned Ladies), and Schism (Le Misanthrope Ou L’Atrabilaire Amoureux/The Misanthrope).

For details about Children’s Plays for Adults, contact 0917-570-4359, 0917-886-0816, or TicketWorld at www.ticketworld.com.ph. For details about Maniacal, contact 0917-844-0520

Dealing with firecrackers, injuries and tetanus

Medicine Cabinet — Reiner W. Gloor

THE AUTHOR wishes all the readers a happy holiday season and is sad and perplexed that during these festivities, many children suffer from injuries due to fireworks, firecrackers and even bullets raining from the sky as people shoot into the air not thinking that the bullets will eventually come straight down and could possible hurt someone. I almost got hit like this once. I sat at my lanai and just after I left the chair I heard a strange sound hit the roof. When I checked it out, I found a bullet which pierced through the roof and landed on the chair I had just been occupying moments ago.