Kasadyahan La Paz goes chill with no judging and scaled down props

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

The corner of Luna and Huervana streets in La Paz, near Gaisano La Paz, will remain a performance area for Kasadyahan sa Kabanwahanan, but competing festivals will no longer be judged there or required to perform with their full grand props.

Alfonso “Fonz” Baldonado III, Kasadyahan Festival director for program and production, said the La Paz stage is significantly smaller than the performance areas at the Iloilo Freedom Grandstand and the Iloilo Sports Complex.

“It is not as big as the performance area in the two other stages,” Baldonado said on Jan. 21. “The preparation of our festivals is for those bigger performance areas.”

Because of the size limitations, Baldonado said organizers presented several options to participating festivals during a meeting held Jan. 17.

Under the first option, festivals that can fully fit their performances within the La Paz stage may use all their props, risers, and panels.

The second option allows groups to partially use selected props that can be safely accommodated in the area.

The third option requires festivals to adjust their performances to prioritize safety and avoid possible accidents or injuries.

Baldonado confirmed that performances at the La Paz stage will no longer be judged.

“Definitely, the festivals will be performing in the La Paz stage, but there will be no judges there,” he said. “The performances will be purely for the entertainment of the crowd and spectators.”

Despite the adjustments, Iloilo Festivals Foundation Inc. Executive Director Joyce Clavecillas assured the public that performance quality will remain unchanged.

“Let’s bear in mind that we already saw the tribes during the blocking and opening salvo, and these events were not judged and not part of the competition, yet we saw how our contingents delivered,” Clavecillas said.

She clarified that competing groups in the Dinagyang Tribes Competition will still perform and be judged in three other designated areas.

IFFI confirmed that La Paz was added as a performance venue on Jan. 8, about two weeks before the Dinagyang Festival highlights, to accommodate more spectators as tickets for existing venues sold out quickly.