Philippine Ballet Theatre Premieres “Maria Makiling”.

In line with Philippine Ballet Theatre's (Philippine Ballet Theatre) mission to promote Philippine heritage, literature, and oral tradition while advancing the art of ballet, Philippine Ballet Theatre has created another original Filipino ballet. The centerpiece of their 2025 season is "Maria Makiling," a full-length ballet that reimagines the legendary guardian of Mount Makiling. Through powerful choreography, this performance captures the essence of Filipino folklore and serves as a reminder to uphold good values.

Winning Collaborations

Maria Makiling marks the third installment of the creative collaboration of Philippine Ballet Theatre’s Artistic Director, Ronilo Jaynario (choreography), and award-winning composer and arranger, Paulo Zarate (original musical score). They are the creative duo behind the successful staging of two original Filipino full-length ballets, Philippine Ballet Theatre’s Ibalon (2023) and Philippine Ballet Theatre’s Sarimanok (2024), which have been well received by audiences both locally and in the U.S.A. Maria Makiling will once again showcase world-class Filipino talent in dance and in music.

Ronilo Jaynario explains, "After creating 'Ibalon,' a hero-based ballet, and 'Sarimanok,' a romantic ballet, I wanted to tell a story that centers on the Filipino community. My goal was to present a ballet that grounds us and evokes a time when love, kindness, and gratitude sustained our communities. This ballet explores the enduring power of love, the pain of loss, and the importance of preserving nature and heritage. Ultimately, it highlights the consequences of a lack of integrity within a community." Creating this ballet was particularly meaningful to him because the Philippine High School of the Arts in Mt. Makiling, Los Baños, Laguna, was his home for four years. During that time, he heard many stories about "Maria," a household name at his school.

Composer Paulo Zarate views Maria Makiling as an exciting challenge, characterized by a collaborative spirit of mutual respect that allows both him and Jaynario to enjoy creative freedom. Their shared vision unifies their work. Zarate explains, "We try to set musical identities to each ballet. For instance, in "Ibalon", it was more anthemic and big, as a superhero movie would sound. In "Sarimanok", it was more rhythmic and percussive, where I played around using meters from 4/4, 3/4, 6/8, 5/8, and 7/8. For Maria Makiling, Ron suggested we go for a more Filipino/Spanish sound, a bit more guitar-driven since both our cultures (Spanish/Filipino) have strong roots with guitar-driven songs like our Filipino kundimans and Spanish flamencos." He hopes that the nuances he created to personify each character and the fantasy treatment in the melodies could really allow the story to flourish on stage.

For this ballet, Philippine Ballet Theatre reached out to Los Banos Tourism office to really ensure that the ballet characterizes Laguna’s diwata in the best possible light. Assisting the creative team was one of Los Banos’ cultural historians UP Los Banos Vice Chancelor for Community Affairs Roberto Cereno, Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs.

Quick Synopsis

Set in the scenic town of Laguna, Maria Makiling brings to life the cherished myth of a mountain goddess who protects the land and its people. During a harvest celebration, three men—an arrogant Spanish officer, a scholarly educator, and a kind-hearted farmer—compete for Maria Makiling’s affection. Her choice ignites a dark conspiracy, resulting in heartbreak and injustice. In a poignant climax, nature itself mourns, and Maria Makiling withdraws from the world, choosing to protect it from afar. Though unseen, Maria Makiling’s spirit remains a living force in the land’s prosperity and the people’s hearts.

Casting Choices

Sharing the spotlight in the role of Maria Makiling are Gabby Jaynario and Jessa Tangalin. Each brings her own voice, energy, and heart to the mythical diwata, offering audiences two beautifully distinct portrayals of this iconic character. Their performances promise to highlight both Maria’s strength and her vulnerability in ways that are deeply personal and moving.

Stepping into the role of Juan, Maria’s love interest, are Matthew Davo and Justine Orande. Alternating in the part, they bring fresh chemistry and different emotional shades to Juan’s journey — from romance to heartbreak, and everything in between.

Maria Makiling will have a limited run from July 5-6, 2025 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theatre. Co-presented by Philippine Airlines, Philippine Ballet Theatre will have a total of three shows (July 5, 2025 3:00 pm and 7:30 pm, and July 6, 202,5, 3:00 pm).

Philippine Ballet Theatre aims to continue its streak of success in Filipino ballets. They look forward to engaging new audiences to get to know what is in the heart of our Filipino stories. Tickets are available through Ticketworld or the Philippine Ballet Theatre Secretariat. For ticket inquiries, call 09688708887, 09129455151, and +63286711968 or email secretariat@pbt.org.ph

Summer 2019 | Workshops and Classes for Kids and Teens.

Now that my son's Recognition Day is over and done with, I can finally say that we are officially on school break! Yay! No more waking up at the crack of dawn, no quizzes, exams, and projects to worry about, no lectures to rewrite and reviewers to type - for the next eight weeks, at least.

But just because we're on a break from school activities doesn't mean we'll be lazing around at home. In fact, Yue will be hustling even harder with his karate training as he prepares for his next tournament and his upcoming belt test. And now that he's an incoming sixth grader, he needs to prepare for high school entrance exams as soon as possible since some schools hold their exams by early October. We're laying the groundwork by signing up for a review class and doing a writing workshop at home.

That being said, here's a list of workshops and activities that Yue and his friends will be preoccupied with all summer long. If you're from San Pablo City or from neighboring towns here in Laguna, you might want to check these out:

MATH-Inic
MATH-Inic is a series of special Math courses that aims to transform children - turning Math haters into Math lovers, and Math lovers to Math masters. It introduces fun, fast and easy ways of computing Math problems and enriches traditional Math classroom lessons through new solving techniques.

Math-Inic San Pablo City.

Not only does MATH-Inic enhance brainpower through Mental Math exercises, it also guarantees results such as improved grades in Math and increased chance of passing scholarship and entrance exams in prestigious schools (think UP and Philippine Science High School).

Yue took a diagnostic exam before we registered to determine which module will be suitable for him.

MATH-Inic's summer classes will run from April 10 to May 9, 2019. Classes will be held thrice a week, two hours per session. Registration is still ongoing.

Pencils Up 

Pencils Up invites kids and teens to its summer art classes - Drawing and Painting (for beginners and advanced levels), Arts and Crafts, and Creative Play (for younger kids). They also offer Creative Writing Classes for aspiring artists and budding writers.

Pencils Up Summer Art Class.

Their Summer Art Class starts on April 3, and will be offered until July 2019. Registration fee is inclusive of art materials.

B.E.S.T Center Basketball Clinic

The official organizer of Milo Philippines' basketball program, the B.E.S.T Center is perhaps the most popular and longest running basketball clinic in the country, having been established in 1978. This program has helped train champions on the fundamentals of basketball with a scientific and modern approach, and has produced notable graduates such as Benjie Paras, Chris Tiu, Kiefer Ravena, Thirdy Ravena, and brothers Juan and Javi Gomez de Liano.

B.E.S.T. Champions.

B.E.S.T Basketball Clinics will be offered in various locations all throughout summer. For San Pablo City, training will be held at the San Gabriel Sports Complex from May 20 to May 25.

Lake City Swimming Club Learn to Swim Program
Swimming is not just fun and play, but also an excellent activity for a child's overall health and well being. It's a life skill, and something that your kid will retain for the rest of his or her life. These were exactly the reasons why I enrolled Yue in this swimming class in the summer of 2014, and the year after that.

Learn to Swim with the Royal Dolphins.

The Learn to Swim Program offers personalized training for beginners and competitive swimmers. The second batch of swimming lessons will start on April 8, with three more batches after that. 

Ballet Regina Summer Dance Workshop

Founded in 1986, Ballet Regina Academy of Dance and Performing Arts offers a continuous program for classical ballet using the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD London) curriculum.

Ballet Regina Summer Dance Workshop.

They offer weekend classes during the school year and intensive training program every summer. This year's Summer Dance Workshop will be held from April 27 to June 2, with a free trial class on April 6. Modern dance and hip hop dance classes are also offered in their summer program.

Young Chefs' Kitchen
Young Chefs’ Kitchen offers hands-on training courses in different areas such as Culinary Arts, Baking / Pastry Arts, and other Food and Beverage training. These courses are designed to provide basic skills and training for women and youth for employment and business enterprise development purposes; and ultimately to enhance their socio-economic condition, to acquire desirable values and attitude, and to develop environmental awareness.

Young Chef's Kitchen Kiddie/Teens Workshop.

This summer, the kitchen will be open to kids age 6 and up. This special workshop will teach kids the basics of cooking and baking, plus lessons on proper food selection, dining etiquette, and mise en place (set up).

Karate-do and Taekwon-do at Kaleidoscope Kids Learning Center
Yue's karate journey began at Kaleidoscope Kids Learning Center (K2LC) four years ago. Back then, K2LC had only two classrooms, offered just a few summer programs, and had a small number of enrollees. Fast forward to 2019, K2LC is now a Dep Ed-recognized private school which offers pre-school and elementary education programs.

Kaleidoscope Kids Learning Center - home of martial arts champions!

Over-all karate champions at the 2019 In-School Youth Martial Arts Games!

For this summer. K2LC will offer various music, arts, and enrichment programs, including karate-do and taekwon-do. Summer classes will start on April 22. Come train with us! :)

Ready to make this summer a productive and memorable one for your kids? I know I am. :)