On the 30th anniversary of the EDSA Revolution, Ballet Manila celebrates the spirit of People Power with the world premiere of Rebel – a full-length ballet by British choreographer Martin Lawrance. Although based on Spartacus, Rebel derives characters and situations from the historic Philippine event. In this series, the dancers taking on the lead roles share their thoughts on the characters they are playing, what they have learned about the People Power Revolution and what they hope to convey to the audience in Rebel.
Where were you in February 1986 when the EDSA Revolution unfolded?
Tiffany Chiang-Janolo (TCJ): I was in Australia as a child. I was one year old.
Abigail Oliveiro (AO): I wasn’t born yet.
What did you know of the revolution and of Imelda Marcos when you were growing up?
TCJ: I really didn’t know anything.
AO: I didn’t know much. She had a lot of shoes! Basically, that’s all I knew!
How does it feel to portray someone from history who is actually still alive?
AO: There’s a fear that you might offend someone because you can’t please everyone. Filipinos might see her a certain way but she sees herself in a different way so you just got to go with your own interpretation and hope it doesn’t offend.
How are you approaching your role? What are you infusing into your character?
TCJ: I think it’s an honor to be playing her. I’ve done a bit of research on her – I read a book on her and watched YouTube videos – so I kind of want to put myself in her situation and the situation around her so I could better portray the character. Also, I listen to the choreographer on how I should portray her. And I believe that they want me to portray her as the supportive wife to Ferdinand Marcos – that she gained power to keep supporting her very powerful husband.
After watching Rebel, what do you want the audience to remember about your character?
TCJ: I’ll be portraying her as a supportive wife to her husband so I hope that the audience will see that. Pretty much I’m just portraying the more human side. All the stories people say about her – all the bad stories – I don’t want to be influenced by the good or the bad.
AO: The one thing I gathered was that she was a really charismatic person. Her presence affected everyone. I’m hoping to portray that alongside being the supportive wife.
Photo credit: Imelda Marcos photograph sourced from the U.S. News & World Report collection at the Library of Congress