Reading a letter from her late grandmother, Lourdes realizes she should accept herself as is. Tears flood her eyes as her family comforts her in a time of self-discovery. The audience remains silent as the scene plays out.
This year’s 33rd annual Pilipino Cultural Celebration (PCC) was held on April 19 and 20, a performance dedicated to Pilipinx customs and traditions, including cultural dances and acapella performances.
“[PCC] is an opportunity for our cast and community to see themselves represented in a [space] where Western media likes to ignore us sometimes,” said Apolo Lagance, a Bayanihan co-chair and actor in this year’s production.
UC Santa Cruz’s Bayanihan chapter hosts PCC. Bayanihan is a Pilipinx student-run organization, and its Santa Cruz chapter is an umbrella organization for several different performing and non-performing groups referred to as aspects.
Bayanihan serves as a support organization that promotes Pilipinx empowerment through the recognition of their diverse community.
“Through PCC and [other productions] it’s important we bring diversity to this university,” said Arlan Mendiola, a senior program manager at SOMeCA who was a member of Bayanihan between 2006 and 2010. “It’s important because it puts students in the driver’s seat of being able to talk about and showcase what is meaningful about their culture,”
This year’s PCC, titled “Maganda Kami – We’re Beautiful,” follows the story of Lourdes, a young Pilipina woman struggling with self-image and familial conflicts. Hoping to follow in her aunt and grandmother’s footsteps by winning the “Miss Mariposa” beauty pageant, Lourdes finds difficulty and insecurities. From struggling in tryouts for the pageant to an eventual success, Lourdes mends the broken relationship between her mother and grandmother. A play of healing generational scars, Lourdes learns to accept those that came before and commit to continuing a legacy that has since skipped a generation through her mother. 
“The fact that [Lourdes and her family] learned to understand each other really resonated with me. Family is something that you can work towards and fix,” said JC Toringan, a first-year intern for Bayanihan’s acting troupe People Power.
The script writer, second-year Dani Dayao,, plays Lourdes’ grandmother. Dayao isn’t new to the stage — having also played a character in last year’s PCC, she understands what it means to take the stage and represent a marginalized group.
“Recognizing that you deserve space, especially as a person of color [is important], no matter where you are,” Dayao said. “I wanted to emphasize how we are deserving of the spaces we take up and it shouldn’t be a rarity that a Pilipina is called beautiful.”
This year’s PCC is centralized on women and their struggles, creating a strong portrayal of a conceptualized Filipinain Lourdes. Having gone through criticisms regarding her skin tone and overall physical appearance, Lourdes manages to become more resilient near the end of the play.
With different dances and performances incorporated in the script, many of Bayanihan’s aspects were able to showcase their talent. Pagkakaisa Dance Troupe (PDT), the traditional dance group housed under Bayanihan, performed Tinikling, a traditional Philippine folk dance involving long bamboo sticks. During the dance, PDT members moved around to the rhythm to avoid being hit by these poles.
“As a dance troupe coordinator, I thought this was a really good opportunity for us to connect with the characters as well as the audience in sharing our traditional dances,” said Sam Cruz, a second-year and one of the dance coordinators.
As the play ends, it becomes clear that Lourdes needed her family in order to win “Miss Mariposa.” Coming together and growing closer was not limited to the characters of Lourdes and her grandmother.
“Ever since I came here and ever since I became more involved […] I’ve met so many more upperclassmen that have taught me so many things about being in college,” says Toringan. “I’ve felt at home and comforted by everyone here.”
