MANILA, Philippines?I was in college for over five years being a ?premajor,? meaning I was enrolled in pre-Med, pre-Business Administration, pre-Law and pre-Public Administration subjects, but never finishing those courses. My close chums, Joonee Gamboa, Adul de Leon, now National Artist Lino Brocka, and I went to Diliman early each day.
However, instead of attending our classes, we spent the whole day in the smoky Liberal Arts basement, where we drank a lot of five-centavo black coffee served by the beloved Mommy Flores, while we eavesdropped on heated discussions on philosophy, politics, religion, art and literature engaged in by the intellectual likes of Dr. Ricardo Pascual, Dr. Onofre Corpuz, Dr. Cesar Majul, Professor Concepcion Dadufalza, Josefina Constantino, Mrs. Dolores Feria and poet Virgie Moreno. What a gloriously original group they were!
Rehearsals
The four of us went to the Diliman campus to socialize, argue and await rehearsals of plays staged by the prestigious UP Dramatic Club, the Upsilon fraternity and the Sigma Delta sorority. There were also independent productions staged by the UP Student Catholic Action, Christian Youth Movement and speech-related classes.
Predictably, we were part of those productions because our mentor, future National Artist Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero, ?Freddie? to all, and the chic and intelligent Isabel ?Bebeng? Sevilla (now Soriano) inculcated in us the firm belief that theater know-how came not from classes, but from actual experience.
Freddie produced the likes of Joe Viterbo, Doy and Celia Laurel, Joy Gamboa Virata, Mars and Kit Viduya, Joe Velez, Jun Roy, Tito Gupit, Phil Cabanos, Angie Collas and Cherry Santos. But, his favorite was Julie Deleña Clemente, because she was as adept in comedy as she was in drama.
My contemporaries and I worked hard to emulate an illustrious list that included Pinky Rigor Farolan, Etta Pargas Rosales, George Sison, Donnie Montelibano, Heidi de Peralta, Bobbie Malay Ocampo, Boots Anson-Roa, Jose Ma. Velez, Henry Voltaire Garcia, Tony Bautista and ex-seminarian Jose Maria Sison.
Pioneer
In 1959, Professor Consuelo Valdez Fonacier and her Speech, Drama and Radio peers like Dr. Alejandro Casambre, Natividad Santuico, Leticia H. Tison, Amelia Lapeña Bonifacio and Lourdes Abad Santos-Benitez founded the Department of Speech and Drama. Erlinda Alcantara Reyes, Sonia Valenciano, Angelita Collas, Nilda Joven, Zenaida Atienza and Nestor Torre were dynamic additions to the faculty. Lola Fonacier also brought in Northwestern University?s Dr. Wallace Bacon, a pioneer in Oral Reading.
I quickly enrolled as one of the department majors, along with Lino, Eric de Guia (aka Kidlat Tahimik), and Barbara and Cecile Gordon. Manette Dayrit Roxas, Felichi Singian Silayan, Edmund Sicam, Agnes Caballe, Alcide Alforque, Noy Dy-Liacco, Heidi Sison and Diana ?Winkie? Collas were among its first students. They were followed by Boots, Tony Gloria, Edru Abraham, Becky Demetillo, Ces Mathay, Alex Cortez, Oskar Atendido, Ianthe Castro de Leon, Antee Bass Hernandez and Carmencita Villar.
For many years, dzUP, founded by Lola Fonacier and managed by Manang Letty, delivered international, domestic and UP-related news to its faithful listeners. Its broadcasts included classical music and readings of literary classics. During the Diliman Barricades, it gained notoriety for airing the alleged bedroom antics of Ferdinand Marcos and American starlet, Dovie Beams. When the Institute of Mass Communication was founded, the station was ceded to that institute.
Core group
Tony Mabesa, Amiel Leonardia, Cris Vertido, Anton Juan, Ogie Juliano, Cortez and I became the core group of directors who staged plays, which eventually found a faithful following from campus residents, as well as students from elsewhere.
The Department of Speech and Drama eventually evolved into the Department of Speech Communication and Theater Arts. Dr. Pat Lazaro and Professor Josefina Agravante, both alumni of the department, were additional faculty members, along with present Chair Belen Calingacion.
The Department of Speech Communication and Theater Arts celebrates its 50th year this year. UP looks up to its faculty and alumni with justifiable pride!
