Subject:  THE TALENT COMPETITION - A PREVIEW TO ONE'S CREATIVITY AND INTELLECT |
Author:
Marcus Acosta
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Date Posted: 20:03:45 05/23/05 Mon
The talent competition of the Miss Philippines 2005 was held at the Casino Filipino in Paranaque City last march 22, 2005. The talent competition is not a compulsory part of the competition. It is practically a competition of camaraderie and a welcome respite from the many grueling social activities the girls have been having for the last two weeks. It is indeed a respite watching 15 girls performing onstage showcasing their God-given talents.
Candidate Number 5 Genebelle Raga-as showed her own version of the song My Valentine. This girl really could carry a tune – a real trooper onstage. But alarmingly, her handlers don’t seem to listen to fashion advice. She was clad in a corset with a mini-skirt. Ok fine the dress was nice but it did not look good on Genebelle.
Candidate Number 12, Olivia Amor Cortes also did a song number to the tune of “Love Moves in a Mysterious Way.” Although she did it proficiently, she can not eclipse the performance done by Candidate Number 5.
Candidate Number is Rhodessa Delante.This candidate sang a medley of songs. I think the songs were lifted from the movie Pocahontas. She was in a fairy-like costume for added effect. But due to a much more superior performance by previous singers, although a laudable performance, she failed to make a mark.
Always a crowd favorite, Nadia Lee Cien Dela Cruz tried to wow the audience with her rendition of “How did you Know”. She also gyrated onstage as if aping the dancers of the noontime show Wowowee. The audience reaction this time to her performance is more of ambivalence.
Istana Eula Burgos, candidate number 24 sang to the tune of Paraiso while sketching the Paradise lost that she was longing for. Although this kind of talent had been a mainstay of beauty pageants, Istana added depth and conviction to her performance and it registered well with ample appreciation from the audience.
Candidate number 6, Pauline Garrison this time was taken seriously for her Big Spender performance ala-Broadway. The problem with this kind of performances is that people in the know would compare them to their theatrical counterparts. Is this candidate at par? Well, Pauline failed to sizzle onstage.
Eizel Jen Nocon, candidate number 7 did an interpretative dance number to the tune of “Isang Dugo, Isang Lahi.” Replete with a baro’t saya costume, this candidate showed tentativeness in her movements described as conservative by a person seated beside us.
Michelle Duyungan did a forgettable Hawaiian dance number. I am given an impression that sometimes we are doing disrespect to the dance itself. Just because we think the dance is an easy that we select it as our talent presentation. There is a proper way to do the dance and unfortunately, Michelle was not at par.
Bernadette Estrada, candidate number 17 did a modern jazz number to the consternation again of my seatmate. Although I an evaluating the performance from an objective point of view, the performance which was tinged with eroticism did not sit well with the audience.
Candidate number 13, April Lynn Villanueva did a monodrama of someone with the ambitions of entering showbiz. I watched this kind of talent so many time – from barangay to regional pageants. From gay to legitimate female beauty pageants. But I am surprised this talent presentation still elicited laughter from the audience although it has become so predictable. Well, with a little twist, flavoring and presentation, an old recipe maybe eaten with gusto again.
Evangelyn Taguba, Candidate Number 18, in keeping with the theme of the pageant delivered a monodrama about the effects of the destruction of our environment. She delivered her piece with all the elements of a monodrama. She pleaded as she delivered with angst, pain and sorrow. She was forceful as she portrayed the wrath and anger of Mother Nature. She delivered with a convincing ploy as she asked the audience to conserve and preserve our environment. A good note is also her costume which is that of a fairy. Quite an endearing concept of a talent for abeauty pageant that has beauties for nature as a concept. Will the concept pay off for Miss Taguba and be handed the talent award on the 29th of May?
Candidate Number 19, Olivia Marie Pe Benito also did a monodrama about the conflict between Christians and Jews. The effort is laudable. But as a pageant observer, I am also a stickler for concept. It would have been great if this candidate delved into the Christian-Muslim conflict in the South. She should have patterned her piece to this piece and have discussed how the war have wrecked havoc to the environment most epsececially the forests which have been a vital source of biodiversity.
Candidate Number 10, Chinette Oblepias did another monodrama. She tackled the battered wife syndrome and has found resolution of the conflict through love of Christ as she finally sketched through charcoal the image of Jesus Christ. Again the effort is praiseworthy but I find the thesis all wrong. I do not wish to spark a debate on the matter so I leave the performance as it is.
Caraga’s candidate, Candidate number 23, wowed the audience with her very sprightly performance. Clad in the native costume of their place she executed an indigenous Surigao dance while performing the city’s musical theme “Surigao, Surigao.” Very impressive indeed. What a wonderful performance to behold.
Candidate Number 21, Ree Carisse Castillo, a deadringer of the first Miss Afghanistan candidate to the Miss Earth 2003 Miss Vida Samadzhai played the drums in consonance with an ethnic music. Quite unique but such distinctiveness did not sustain the audience and my interest.
In my years of following beauty pageants, I have always debated with organizers that we remove the talent competition from the schedule of activities. Replace it with another competition like the Casual Wear Competition or whatever. Why do I insist? Because art exists in different forms and there are different criteria in evaluating them. Signers should be judged according to their musicality and performance. Public speaking through oration, monodrama, oral interpretation and interpretative reading should be judged according to delivery, power, character and life. A dance number is again classified according to genre and this should be judged according to performance, technical excellence and the like.
What I am saying is that judging a talent competition is mind boggling when you take into consideration all these aspects. When bounded by general criteria, we may be eliminating other good performances just because of the general impact that it had on the audience and the judges. Few judges may have seen the wisdom of individually evaluating the talents.
Well after having an incursion of what judges should pit in mind about talent performances, since it is a general talent criteria that was used, based on impact, I have chosen the following likely contenders for the Miss Talent Award:
My take on the matter is that it would be a duel between 18 and 23. These talent performances dwelled on concept. One adhered to the theme of the pageant and judges are sometimes inclined and swayed to award the girl who performed well with the theme to boot. This had happened in the recent past. But if the candidate is to be judged based on performance impact, then it would be Candidate number 23. Whatever it is, it is talent my dear. It is still important because you could have view of what is inside of the cerebral cortices of these ladies. Their creative abilities reflect basically their intelligence. I will venture on the totality of these candidates in my next postings.
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