Michael Hobbs
It’s often said that laughter is the best medicine. But for the Philippine island of Bohol, it’s music that’s mending their hearts.
When a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the central Philippine island, it not only killed 222 people, ruined thousands of homes but also destroyed its churches – the largest concentration of cultural heritage buildings in the Philippines. These limestone churches were built with the brawn of local Boholanos under Spanish rule in the 18th century. Since the earthquake struck in October 2013, the sight of these icons in ruins has caused great anguish and sadness for Boholanos, a deeply spiritual people.
Naturally, local residents and authorities scrambled to restore basic order in the weeks and months following the quake. Homes were built, roads were paved and shops reopened. But the churches remained in rubble.
Renowned theatre director, Lutgardo Labad or simply “Gardy” was someone that saw how performing arts could not only restore the churches but the communities in despair.
In a crowded Melbourne cafe with a travel-weary smile, he begins to tell me about his part in it all. Just three days after the quake it was Gardy that gathered the Loboc Children’s Choir to sing outside the ruins of the Loboc Church in front of national media.
This powerful video in which the choir made their first televised appearance, “gripped people,” says Gardy. “It made people realise the preciousness of what had happened,” he says.
Before the quake, Gardy, once a music composer for movies in Manila, had for years been advocating for the arts in Bohol as a way to promote their rich ecoculture. His connection to the Loboc Children’s Choir stems back to 1996 when he produced their first ever concert and from there, developed them into a proud cultural force of international acclaim.
In response to grieving communities affected by the earthquake, Gardy founded the theater group Dulaang Kasing Sining (DKS), which literally translates as “theatre group performing arts with a heart.”
The choir and the DKS under Gardy’s leadership linked with artists throughout the Philippines and visited struggling communities in Bohol. They performed ‘arts therapy’ workshops. The workshops allowed people to talk about their experiences, reflect on them and most importantly make meaning of the disaster.
Gardy says he found people “living in a daze. People didn’t want to work. They questioned their faith in God and in life. ‘Why would this happen to me?’ they would ask.
They needed something to break the routine. I wanted to bring people together – to draw, to sing, to write and to dance. To give people back their energy and a new happiness in life.”
The power of Gardy’s workshops were so profound that on the first anniversary of the earthquake, he was approached by the Philippine Ministry for Culture to produce a re-enactment of Bohol’s rise from the wreckage.
They had found the right person for the job. Gardy suddenly had a vision and called on nearly 200 actors, singers and dancers. Gardy’s face lights up when he remembers his idea for the concert. “Why don’t we get all the people who worked so hard to get Bohol moving again? The police, the fireman and all those people” he says.
Before long, Gardy was planning a one-off rehearsal for 500 people. Just when the response was almost overwhelming, three days before the rehearsal, Gardy was flooded with calls from would-be actors wanting a piece of the action. “Policeman would come to me and plead ‘Gardy… I have 30 more. They were there, they all helped. Can you let them in?’” On the day of rehearsal there were 800 people.
Gardy was worried the latecomers wouldn’t perform without any training. He didn’t think they could suddenly just ‘feel’ on the day what they did a year before. But they did. “They performed so well!” says Gardy.
“They were screaming, crying, it all came back. They saw their past. On top of that beautiful music from the choir… it healed all of them” says Gardy proudly.
This Saturday’s live performance, ‘Bohol Rising’, is the finished product of all this hard work. The Loboc Children’s Choir along with three actors from the DKS will convey the inspirational story at Melbourne’s Federation Square as part of their Australasian tour. Their tour will raise funds for the restoration of the Bohol churches, many of which are still in ruins.
Before taking to the stage on Saturday, the group will visit to the Victorian town of Strathewen – a town that lost more lives in the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires than any other.
The Loboc Children’s choir along with local favourites, the Chocolate Lilies choir, will sing at Strathewen Primary School – a school rebuilt after it perished in the fires.
It’s no accident the bushfire affected children of Strathewen will meet with the earthquake affected children of Loboc. Though oceans apart, they’ve both been through something no child should have to.
The common thread between the two communities stretches further to the music that’s helped rebuild their spirits.
When Melbourne organising committee member Paul Hopcraft heard the Chocolate Lilies perform, he was struck by the beauty of their music and the way their director, Nerida Kirov worked with the audience. Paul soon after got in touch with Nerida and arranged for the special meeting between the choirs and respective communities.
As in Bohol, the townships affected by the Black Saturday bushfires, which killed 173 people, also found healing in the power of music. Nerida’s Chocolate Lilies Choir has been connecting communities in North East Victoria through through the choir for 23 years.
Nerida who lost nine of her own friends in the fires says the choir has always reached out to those in the community in need so it was natural that they did so then. She says they began workshops at the encouragement of some in the community who wanted to connect.
She says her and the ‘Lilies’ as she calls them, created spaces where grieving people could simply ‘be’. She says “they didn’t have to sing. They could just come and sit down. They bathed in it and slowly they became part of it. You could see the relief that it gave people.”
When I ask Nerida what’s in the music that has this effect, she says “it’s the beautiful melodies. Beauty is really important for grief and music is a big part of that.”
Many whom the choir reached out to now sing with the Lilies and reach out to those still struggling with the events of 2009. Nerida says “the grief of the fires is still very raw for people. So we’ll keep doing what we’re doing, connecting with people.”
While the memories of these tragedies remain for the communities of North East Victoria and Bohol, their bond through the power of the arts serves as a chance for renewal.
Despite the pain there can be new connections formed, a new faith in life. Before I leave Gardy he parts with a simple message, “never forget your art.”
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On Friday 26 June, the Loboc Children’s Choir visits Strathewen Primary School where they will share their stories and connect their communities.
On Saturday 27 June, the Loboc Children’s Choir performs at a fundraising concert ‘Bohol Rising: The Concert Musical’ at 7.30pm, Deakin Edge. Check out the Loboc Choir’s videos on https://www.facebook.com/RebuildBoholAu?fref=nf. Tickets at tinyurl.com/rebuildboholtickets
