What makes a hero?

“I have asked myself many times: Is the Filipino worth suffering, or even dying, for? Is he not a coward who would readily yield to any colonizer, be he foreign or homegrown? Is a Filipino more comfortable under an authoritarian leader because he does not want to be burdened with the freedom of choice? Is he unprepared, or worse, ill-suited for presidential or parliamentary democracy?

“I have carefully weighed the virtues and the faults of the Filipino and I have come to the conclusion that he is worth dying for because he is the nation’s greatest untapped resource.”

 

–Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr., Aug. 4, 1980

Three years and 17 days after he uttered these words, Ninoy Aquino was slain on the tarmac of the Manila International Airport. Every year since, we have commemorated his death as the start of our collective awareness of our power as a people.

I have to say, there is one human resource that hasn’t remained untapped. That is the resource of local performers and entertainers, and I’m extremely happy and proud to count myself among the ranks.

The world over

Filipinos are known the world over for the quality and, if I may be so bold, the quantity, of singers that are actively working all over the world. Almost 25 years ago, in September 1989, a large group of Pinoy theater performers made their West End debuts in Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s “Miss Saigon,” produced by Cameron Mackintosh. A year and change later, for the Broadway production that opened in April of 1991, the overwhelming majority of the Asian performers in “Miss Saigon” were Filipino-American. Today, it is reported that majority of the Asian performers in the Broadway community itself—singers, actors, and dancers— are of Filipino descent.

West End stars

Now, another group of very talented Pinoy artists (including Jon Jon Briones and Rachelle Ann Go) are performing nightly in both principal and ensemble roles in the West End revival production of the same show. And, opening at the end of September, the off-Broadway hit “Here Lies Love,” still playing to full houses at the Public Theater in New York, will be opening in London’s National Theatre starring our very own Mark Bautista as Ferdinand Marcos, alongside Fil-Aussie actor Natalie Mendoza as Imelda Marcos, and West End veteran Gia Macuja-Atchison as Estrella (both of whom are “Miss Saigon” alumnae from previous productions).

In the world of pop music, apl.de.ap and Charice have gained ground as concert performers and recording stars, forces to be reckoned with. In the world of dance, prima ballerinas Maniya Barredo and Lisa Macuja-Elizalde are celebrated for their talent and beauty, and hip-hop groups Philippine All-Stars and the A-Team have won awards besting other groups from all over the world. And in classical music, pianist Cecile Licad is still wowing audiences with her lightning-fast fingers.

They’re everywhere

Beyond that, walk into any club or bar where you hear a live band playing. Chances are, the singer and musicians are Pinoy, too. This is something I’ve observed during my own travels. In Shanghai, China, the band playing at our hotel bar was Filipino. I passed a random club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and could tell right away that the band was Filipino. In Singapore, I walked into a bar, and it was the same story.

Locally… well, we know what the scene is like. The quality of singers that we find, famous or not, is mind-blowing. Working on “The Voice” (both the adults and kids versions) proved this beyond a shadow of a doubt. Even the people we didn’t turn our chairs for were talented.

So where am I going with all this as we celebrate Ninoy Aquino Day?

Heads held high

For me, heroism isn’t only about laying down one’s life for the sake of our people. It isn’t only about standing up against institutionalized oppression or fighting for human rights. Nor is it only about calling out the wrongs of the government in the hopes that they be righted.

Heroism can be found in any act that allows our entire people to walk with heads held high. Filipino performers all over the world, past and present, have done, and continue to do, exactly that. We are a proud bunch, making our contributions by doing what we do best—getting up in front of people and performing. Music is in our blood and in the marrow of our bones. It gives us the rhythm that makes our hearts beat.

So to you all, the singers, dancers, and actors born and bred on our shores, divinely inspired to follow a path into the performing arts, allow me to stand and salute you, for using your God-

given talents to bring pride to our nation and our people.

You are all, without a doubt, heroes. And that you will be until your last breath.