"Tignan mo ang balat mo. Tignan mo ang mga batok na natamo mo mula sa pagkabata mo." -The young Apo Whang Od to herself. "Ang Huling Mambabatok"
Those were the lines that strikes me most whilst watching the play that left me almost in tears. As the young Apo Whang Od talk to her present self, on the play. This was the part where emotions have a great impact for me as an audience as she start questioning herself if she made the right decision.
People of these days, specially the young once easily get disappointed on what they have been. Easily get disappointed that they didn't make it on a specific time frame. People just easily give up on their dreams on what they wanted to do in life, on their purpose; without them realizing that they must have gone through the process to be aware and understand what they must do.
Indeed life isn't easy, life gives you a lot a trials and challenges, and there you are easily distracted by the hardships and pain. We all have that and that's what the play focused on. The challenges and the hardships before you achieve success, not everyone has a privileged life that we all dream of, but you are lucky to be given a greater task that soon you will realize that it is all worthy.
In the story of "Ang Huling Mambabatok," the people of Buscalan and Apo Whang Od herself experienced a lot of difficulties before she gets to what she have right now. The play has this echoing message to its audience, shouting out loud not to forget our roots and must not be afraid and be ashamed of who we are and what we are!
Wear your skin with pride as it tells your story. As it tells your culture and identity. It shouts out that the society must give an equal respect to the diverse Filipino culture that we must embrace and love our own country, our own culture and differences.
There's nothing wrong with innovating and progress, but just like the tree, if we take away and forget our roots, we are going to die. That's the soul of our culture, and tradition, the core of our values that makes us a great and rich nation. The rich culture that the western people would die for, the culture that they are trying to kill and making us forget. Young people, we are the hope of the future, we must step forward carrying what our ancestors and heroes die for.
"Ang Huling Mambabatok" posses a great narrative and depth on its message. It focuses on a tribe from Kalinga, but it has these values and moral lesson applicable to all culture and all places in the country. The way it moved the mindset of the people towards to indigenous tribes from all over the country is far beyond what the present generation expected. That the people must see a greater values in preserving our heritage, our culture and tradition. People must realize that we as a nation is really rich in many ways, that we embrace and enrich it. We must rediscover what we have forgotten. We must research and study the greatness of our own nation.
DLSU Harlequin Theatre Guild’s 52nd season, "Ang Huling Mambabatok," the first musical play in the Philippines inspired by the life of Maria Oggay also known as Apo Whang Od. Written by Em Mendez and directed by Romualdo “Raffy” Tejada. To DLSU Harlequin Theater Guild and to everyone behind this magnificent masterpiece, congratulations and thank you so much for a very awakening and timely performance.
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