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January 28, 2018
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ILOILO City – One major reason why thousands of local and foreign tourists flock to Iloilo City every January is to witness the world-famous Dinagyang Festival.
But what makes Dinagyang distinct from other festivals in the country?
For Benito Jimena, former Iloilo City Tourism Officer and former executive director of the Dinagyang Festival, innovations introduced through the years have made Dinagyang one of the most awarded festivals in the country and one of the highly-acclaimed events in the international arena.
“Dinagyang has become a product of looking at the festival as a vehicle for directing the vision of the city,” said Jimena.
Dinagyang is no longer a copycat of other festivals devoted to the Santo Niño because it has evolved into something different, he added.
“We made street dancing as an endeavor that keeps on evolving for so many years. We did not stay stationary in just one concept,” he emphasized.
Innovations introduced included multi-level movements and the use of risers in the performances of various tribes.
“Dinagyang started it all. We made street dancing as innovative as possible,” said Jimena.
He also said the utilization of risers has made possible the panoramic view of the presentations and for performers to be seen in various levels.
The use of dark brown body paint for the performers also makes Dinagyang different from the other Santo Niño festivals all over the country.
“Dinagyang uses body color but we changed it to dark brown. We did not remain black because we believe that the Ati is dark brown and not black. The use of dark brown body paint has become the brand of Dinagyang,” he said.
Jimena shared that this was one of the things they presented during the screening for the Galing Pook Awards years back when asked what made Dinagyang distinct.
Dinagyang Festival was also the first religious-cultural celebration in the country to be conferred with such prestigious award.
Dinagyang comes from “dagyang”, an Ilonggo term for revelry or merrymaking.
The term was coined in 1977 by Ilonggo writer/broadcaster Pacifico Sudario to describe the riotous celebration.
Prior to this, Dinagyang was labeled “Iloilo Ati-Atihan” to differentiate it from many Ati tribal festivals that was starting to be prevalent in the country at that time.
This year, the city of Iloilo is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Dinagyang Festival, anchored on the theme, “Timeless Tradition, Culture and Devotion” and the religious theme of “Señor Santo Niño: Chaste, Poor and Obedient Son of God.” (PIA-Iloilo/PN)
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