Note: this series is based on the findings of a study made possible by a grant from the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) conducted by Dr. Ramon Felipe A. Sarmiento (this writer) and Dr. Jose Z. Tria, both professors at the Catanduanes State University.
In the first part of this series, we told of the wide proliferation of the kagharong all over the province. In the second, we elaborated on the text and the music. In this third part, we continue to describe kagharong as traditional community theatre genre. By labelling it as traditional theatre, we call attention to the fact that it is an old practice, not a modern stage performance and does not use realism as an approach to portray life. Instead, it is a highly stylized and creative manner of dramatic presentation. We have initially demonstrated this in part 2 by discussing the text and music. Here, we continue on to the visual aspects or the spectacle (production design) and the staging and acting conventions. We will cap this third part by a consideration of the social organization involved in putting the kagharong together. It is, after all, a community enterprise.
Kagharong production design
The horse.
Before taking notice of what one hears, what initially appeals to the people is what they see. When I was a child, I used to follow the kagharong through the streets because I wanted to get enough view of the horse that carries Mary. In the kagharong text, Joseph is supposed to have borrowed a jumentillo or a small ass or a donkey. However, there is no donkey in Catanduanes so they use a horse. When I was growing up, one seldom saw a horse; the calesa was already obsolete in late 1960s. But there was always one that is available for the kagharong. With other curious children, I tried touching the horse’s tail or the broad side of the tummy but was always wary of a kick. We observed, too, the animal’s changing moods and how the horse-tender Adot tried to put the beast under control.
To allow Mary to be perched atop the horse, they provided a specially made saddle of rattan that made her sit not astride but on one side. The contraption was fitted with back and arms rest and padded with a pillow. The horse was a special feature of the kagharong. It was a novel object of curiosity and lent the kagharong a particular quaintness. For another thing, it placed Mary on a higher level for maximum visibility. She was after all the center of attention of the kagharong. In the northern towns such as Viga, they used a carabao on account of the scarcity of horses. Localization at its best.
So, it was such disappointment to many when during the 70s, the use of a horse became more problematic, for various reasons. Firstly, there were incidents that put not only Mary in physical danger but also the audience. In one case, Mary had to suddenly jump off in her full regalia as the horse started to go berserk. They had to do the rest of the kagharong in a tricycle. Secondly, horses had become rare and expensive, the last time they used it in Virac they needed fifteen thousand to rent one. For another thing, when Adot passed away, there was difficulty finding a reliable horse tender. The Adot of our fond memories brought with him into the grave his special, magical charm in taming beasts.
So substitution had to be resorted to. In barangay Antipolo they had a most ingenious substitute to the horse: a wooden dummy of the animal mounted on a cart. What made it really tantalizing was that it had a large and erect phallus, so visible that no one misses it. Children would come and touch it with curiosity. Adults would beam in amusement or even squeal with delight: “Ay ano man an!” Now, it has long been lost to natural deterioration. They have since replaced it with a new dummy of synthetic materials of more modest bearing, without brandishing its instrument of virility.
While more modest staging such as in the “baray-baray” in the boondocks have Mary and Joseph do the rounds on foot, other cases would use other means to have the couple conveyed in a more special way. In Sto. Niño, Virac for example, they mounted the holy couple on a top-down tricycle decorated with arches of flowers and Tivoli lights. In the Immaculate Conception parish of Virac, they had fabricated a larger-than-life horse made of metal. Its head and tail are fitted with a string that is pulled to feign natural movements of nodding and swaying. It is mounted on a large truck decorated with foliage to depict the setting of the journey and fitted with its own lighting system. But it entails higher cost.
Costume.
Players in the kagharong put on special clothing representing their characters. Being so, there are two types, corresponding to the bida-kontrabida distinction. Here, the aim is more suggestive than realistic. As a traditional dramatic genre, there are conventions established as regards costuming. For Mary and Joseph, the practice is to take after Catholic iconography; they try to duplicate the garbs of holy images on the altar. So Mary comes in a blue-and-white combination. She puts on a veil of white or blue and a long-sleeved floor-length dress of white with blue sash. It is always in glossy satin that most often has glittery trimmings at the seams, sleeves and neckline for some touch of understated opulence. She is also fitted with a made-up halo with twelve stars. Recently, the stars are lighted by small electric bulbs energized by hidden batteries. Joseph, for his part, is always in yellow-and-green combination. He is fitted with faux beard and a wig. He holds a staff that has a sprout of white flowers at the top end.
Sometimes, they would apply variations. The couple might wear wide-brimmed hats which is symbolic of travel. For Mary, the hat is fitted with a plume or flowers. Some years back, Atty. Gregorio Sarmiento Jr. playing Joseph had replaced the flowers on his staff with a lantern. Now, it seemed to have become the norm. In any case, there had been no attempts to adopt authentic mid-Eastern way of clothing. It won’t do to have the holy couple look like poor Jewish folk. Catholic iconography remains the basis. They have to be garbed with some lavishness worthy of their stature in the heavenly hierarchy. Along this line, it may be asked: was Mary’s pregnancy physically represented? Ever since I have been watching the kagharong I would always glance, almost as a habit, at Mary’s tummy. It was always flat unless the one playing the role is already an elderly who has acquired a bulge for a physiological reason other than pregnancy. Strapping on a pillow was out of the question.
The caseros have no religious iconography to take on. The convention established was to have them in the flashiest they can muster. The womenfolk would be in stylish show-off dresses of bright and stark colors, complete with fancy accessories and jewelry. They would visit the parlor for make-up and hairstyling. They would put on heavier rouge than usual. The menfolk don their formal best, like they would be ninongs in a grandiose wedding. The whole point of this tradition for dressing the caseros is to be able to project the flaunting and exhibitionism of the opulent, powerful and privileged class as the people imagine it in their particular social context.
In recent years, there had been attempts to feign “realism” by having the caseros wear Arab or mid-Eastern traditional costume. However, this was met with hostility by the old folk. They found it strange. They reasoned out that it was not the “correct” way. On the other hand, there had been complaints from the veterans that the young set of casero singers are not properly attired when they come in their own trendy get-ups of casual look, appearing more like they were going to the mall.
Decorating venues. As it was with costumes, trying to recreate historical realism in the furbishing of venues has been met with resistance by the traditionalists. When a casero sponsor tried to mock-up their house façade for the kagharong with an “antique” mid-Eastern design, some old folk made discouraging comments as “Ano man an, baging kalaen man?” Anyway, casero sponsors do not seem to warm up to this new approach. For them, the point of decorating is to project opulence by displaying one’s wares, not to serve the interest of historical realism.
So the decorating of casero façade had relied on a kind of popular aesthetics that itself evolved through time. In olden days, they employed design elements used for any festive occasion, secular or religious (social dances, programs, fiestas, weddings, etc.). These include the use of nipa or coconut fronds or anahaw leaves to create archways, borders, and accents; swaths of colorful draperies; flowers, buntings. The only items suggestive of the Christmas season were lanterns. In more recent times when commercial Christmas decors had been available, casero venues had started to look more like store display windows or malls spruced up for the holidays. So there appeared all sorts of Christmassy trimmings: Tivoli lights, synthetic evergreens, poinsettias, etc. Lanterns had become bigger and more glittery. There might even be a fancy “Merry Christmas” graphics emblazoned on the veranda rail or backdrop wall, or Santa on his sled pulled by reindeers riding atop the roof. It can happen that the frenzied lights and glitter compete with the singing and antics of the caseros.
Acting conventions
The stereotyping of characters of the kagharong surely manifests into the manner of acting which takes cue from the text and music. The singing itself constitutes much of the acting as voice tone and texture create the emotional content. Mary should have a good soprano while Joseph is ideally a tenor. The padron for his part is a baritone. In Buyo, the mainstay padron is a female in the person of Ms. Purita Padilla who can manage a good solid interpretation. The other caseros sing in a chorus so therefore they must consist of the full range of voices.
Visual bodily projections complement the vocals. For Joseph and Mary, facial expression is limited to subtle emotions of humble begging, sadness, anxiety and resignation. Mary is differentiated from Joseph as she carries through with inner strength in the face of adversity. Throughout the ordeal, they practically make no hand gestures, except at the beginning where they go through the routines of preparing for the journey.
In contrast, the caseros are given to a lot of body movements to go with their loud and shrill singing. They gesticulate in abundance, arms flailing in all directions, and making little dancing steps (ikin-ikin) to the beat of their singing, which complement their making of nasty faces, all to annoy and mock the pious and serene couple.
Social organization
Aside from being traditional the kagharong is also a form of community theatre. It means that it is not some enterprise of the elite; its observance is a collaboration of a great number of people coming from across the social spectrum. Its ownership is that of the people’s. In operational terms, this means two things. First has to do with the audience. The kagharong is not performed in an exclusive venue like in in a theater house but in expansive spaces in the community, It is a mobile performance along the streets such that it can embrace huge audiences from all walks of life. This audience reach had greatly expanded its scope thru the “baray-baray” modality where the remotest areas are served. But this not to say that the “special” kagharong as described in Part 1 is not community theatre: similarly, it is performed in open spaces around the community.
The second implication of “community” has to do with the wide participation in implementing the kagharong. Since anybody can remember, the kagharong was always the initiative of lay leadership of local church units at all levels. In the barangays, the lay religious teams are headed by respective matandas (elders) who federate into the centro catolico at the parish/mission church level. Mounting the kagharong is the responsibility of the centro catolico that taps on its grassroots network in the barangays. Lately, the centro catolico has been incorporated into the pastoral councils chaired by the parish priest. But it remains that the kagharong is maintained by the lay sector of the church.
So towards the onset of December each year, the machinery that puts together the kagharong starts to grind, involving both preparation and implementation. The team of enablers in a pastoral council is responsible for the various stages of implementation, from recruiting of participants (Mary and Joseph, the caseros) to identifying casa sponsors, to facilitating rehearsals, to taking care of logistic requirements. Then on to the actual staging.
In every area (barangay or parish/mission church) there is always a core team directly responsible in the staging of kagharong, typically the music ministry group. Particularly, there is always a key person, sometimes a partnership, who takes charge of the technical matters of rehearsing the players because he or she holds the know-how of singing and other aspects of staging. The key person, a veritable cultural bearer, is typically a veteran in playing major roles, perhaps several times, and then becoming the understudy or assistant of the current master. When the latter becomes indisposed, the understudy takes over the role. The kagharong survives by the continuous turn-over of generations of such key persons. In the central parish of Virac, for example, we saw the succession of seven kagharong masters from the pre-war days to the present.
Who gets to play roles in kagharong? Mary is the main character and Joseph is only second fiddle to her. Choosing the one to take Mary’s role is based on two factors. First is the ability to sing a good soprano. Then too is the panata or religious vow. Doing it is considered to endow one with spiritual favors. So it happens that there is a waiting queue of ladies who desire to do the role. Sometimes, it would take a few years before one can take her turn. But another factor is the social prestige that goes with it. The same case is true in identifying the role of Joseph, but on a lesser degree. But major consideration is always the ability to sing. In recent years, there had been a dearth of volunteers to do the major roles. It happens then, especially in small areas, that players would reprise the role year after year. growing old with it. Indeed, there are elderlies who do Mary, never mind that the mother of Jesus was only fourteen when she conceived the Messiah.
It is not as critical in the case of the caseros. In olden times, the local stable of church cantores do the singing. It happened therefore that well-heeled and coifed cantoras would run from casa to casa trying to outdo the holy couple so that they be in the proper place time. Now, there are a number of church choirs who can do casero chorus. Gone are the days of the lagaristas. But other non-church-based groups had started to participate. In Buyo, Virac the organization of tricycle drivers had put up their own casero group. For the last two years a group of gays from the LGBTQ sector had been doing the caballero casa which is an all-male piece. So it is quite a spectacle seeing gays attired as gentlemen and signing in deep macho baritone. In San Vicente, Virac. The caseros are all youngsters in their early teens. This trend of expanding participation is just one more indicator that the kagharong had become a community endeavor more than ever, in ways never seen before. It assures continuity. Kagharong is indeed a living tradition that has become an important part of Catandunganon heritage.
MAOGMANG NAVIDAD SA GABOS!