This is what filmmaker, playwright, and stage director Kanakan-Balintagos and his teffiric ensemble offer in Tanghalang Pilipino's production of his "Mga Buhay na Apoy"--an elegiac, lyrical and profoundly moving ode to rediscoverng one's cultural roots. That act of rediscovery becomes a balm of healing that mends broken hearts, crushed spirits, and even strained family ties.

"Mga Buhay na Apoy" is obviously a labor of love for Balintagos. Through this play--according to him, written when he was a young man, before he launched an acclaimed career in filmmaking--Balintagos attempts to reclaim his heritage and inspires his audience to embark on their own journey to rediscover theirs. This acknowledged descendant of shamans from Palawan effortlessly shows, through his deeplu personal play, that when it comes to knowing one's self, the journeyman not only touches enchantment, he or she becomes part of it.--Cora Llamas, Philippine Daily Inquirer

2023/120pp
bookpaper/paperback