On the Potential of Performing Arts, Theater and the Creative Economy in Iloilo
Insights from Broadway Producer, Jhett Tolentino
A few weeks ago, I was at a local cafe with my brother and his friends when I heard them talking about this Broadway show at the nearby mall. They told me it was organized by a Tony Award-winning producer named Jhett Tolentino, who was born and raised in our home city.
“Really? Broadway in Iloilo? By an Ilonggo? How in the world did I NOT know about this?!”, I said incredulously.
Though I haven’t really been to the Broadway scene in New York, I started appreciating their productions through friends in Manila who were part of theater groups. They exposed me to Broadway classics like Rent, Death of a Salesman, Hairspray, The Glass Menagerie, Wicked, Fiddler on the Roof, etc. So as a self-proclaimed fan of this performing art, it was a great surprise to know we had a Tony Award winner right in our own home town!
I was so intrigued that I randomly messaged Jhett on Facebook, inviting him to share his story with our group in the Global Shapers Iloilo Hub. To my delight, he replied and graciously accepted the invitation.
Hence this event:
So who is Jhett Tolentino?
The talk (and a quick Google search) revealed to me the following tidbits I never knew about our fellow Ilonggo:
- He graduated Accountancy from the University of Iloilo.
- After moving to the United States, he spent a lot of time after work watching Broadway productions and eventually created a blog reviewing the shows.
- From blogging he moved to producing, together with a co-producer, Joan Raffe and they formed the Joan Jhett Productions LLC.
- To date, Jhett Tolentino co-produced three Tony-award winning plays — Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Best Play, 2013); A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Best Musical, 2014); A Raisin in the Sun (Best Revival of a Play, 2014);
- He was also recently recognized as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) of the Philippines, awarded by President Rodrigo Duterte himself at Malacañan Palace.
Obviously, Iloilo is a FAR cry from Broadway — a fact that Jhett himself said. But with credibility established in New York, Jhett Tolentino is eager to make the theater arts in Iloilo flourish. And why Iloilo of all places in the Philippines? Because of the same reason that drives Ilonggos like me to move back, after several years living abroad or in the country’s capital —because Iloilo is home. And home is definitely where the heart (and art) is!
The Creative Economy in Iloilo
There is no doubt that Iloilo is teeming with creative talent. Since moving back home from Manila in late-2015, I was fascinated to have witnessed monthly creative events happening, and not just about performing arts. Events such as…
ArtBike…
CineKasimanwa (a local film festival)…
and an Art Expo and Convention.
Our festivals in themselves have created a culture of artistic showmanship.
Needless to say, there are many creatives in Iloilo, and in the Western Visayas region as a whole.
Of course, there will always be arguments against pursuing the arts. There is still this dominant culture which leans more towards “practical” economic endeavors than “lofty” artistic initiatives. But arts contribute to the economy. And I have always believed that Iloilo and our neighboring Western Visayas provinces, can be a bustling creative economy — a term I first heard from the World Economic Forum. It refers to an “entire cultural environment” that enables creative industries and talent to flourish. (Read more at this link: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_2016_WhitePaper_Enabling_the_Creative_Economy.pdf).
Although theater is just one of the many art forms, theater in itself can be a major economic contributor. In the US, theater contributed a significant $7.1 billion to the economy in 2013. Jhett pointed out that one theater production alone can employ several individuals from set designers, builders choreographers, musicians, light technicians, sound engineers, marketing managers and of course, the actors and directors. That’s something to think about the next time you buy a ticket for a show.
The potential for a creative economy is there. But like any compelling vision, huge strides need to be made for an idea to be reality.
For theater arts, Jhett emphasized two areas of concern:
(1) Venues
Even amidst a world infested by electronic screens, theater is still best enjoyed on a live stage. There is a huge opportunity to draw big-ticket productions and Broadway names to our city, but we need venues that can seat thousands of people at once, and are conducive for live entertainment shows (not just conferences). Unless businessmen and the local government invest in bigger arenas and theaters, we will always be limited by our university or mall auditoriums, which can only accommodate a handful.
But while we lobby for these infrastructure investments, we can also start small with our existing public spaces. How about theater in our plazas? Why not bring back the tradition a few centuries ago when Iloilo’s public plazas were the venues for popular zarzuelas and musical concertos? This will greatly enhance the city life too and boost tourism (See this article on how art can shape cities).
(2) Education
Another important need that Jhett Tolentino strongly emphasized is education. You can be exposed to theater, but one needs to understand it better so one can love theater more. As an education hub in Western Visayas, Iloilo is home to several universities. All these academic institutions, including primary schools, actively expose students to theater productions happening in the city. Just ask any Ilonggo student how many shows they had to watch to write reaction papers for! But it’s one thing to lead a horse to the water. It’s another thing to get him to drink it. In other words, educators can do more than simply require students to watch plays and write reaction papers afterwards.
How about instilling in them a genuine appreciation and understanding of theater? Make them fall in love with the stories on stage. To encourage in a child the love for theater greatly contributes to his or her personal development. Evidence of this is documented in scientific research. One study shows that aside from “enhancing literary knowledge”, exposure to live theater significantly increased the students' empathy, emotional quotient and tolerance.
Overall, theater helps form a better citizen.
It was therefore mentioned in our discussion that if we want to make performing arts flourish (and especially theater), the advocates and artists /entrepreneurs must work closely with educators. With this collaboration, we can help develop a new generation of audience for the future of performing arts, and the whole creative economy of Iloilo.
I’ll know that we have made some progress regarding this, if there is a significant number of Ilonggos who get giddy upon knowing that a theater maven like Jhett Tolentino is in town. 😉
Thank you once again, Jhett, for sharing your generous time and insights with us! Madamo gid nga salamat!
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For more questions about the Creative Economy in Iloilo, feel free to email noreenmarian.bautista[at]gmail.com
