PRESS RELEASE
WDC-8-2023
06 MARCH 2023
Embassy Press and Information Section
info@phembassy-us.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ambassador Jose Manuel G. Romualdez watched the premiere opening of “The Mortification of Fovea Munson” at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Family Theater on March 04, 2023.
The Mortification of Fovea Munson tells the entertaining and delightful story of Fovea Munson, portrayed by actress Justine “Icy” Moral, and her Filipino-American family. Justine was joined by Regina Aquino – who played Fovea’s Mom and Lola Van. Their performances were complemented by the enchanting production and music done by its Filipino-led cast and creatives team.
Right after the show, Ambassador Romualdez expressed that “It is truly amazing to finally see the Filipino family and culture shown on-stage at the Kennedy Center. The Filipino artistry, humor, and imagination was enchantingly represented and will definitely raise the profile of the Filipino people. Even more beautiful was the fact that when the show ended, a Filipino child was excitedly waiting outside to meet the cast members who looked like her. This was another groundbreaking moment for the Filipino community in the DMV area.”
Regina had this to say about her first onstage performance of a Filipino character “It’s very overwhelming but it’s also quite an honor. I’m so moved at showing our culture in front of so many people both Filipino and non Filipinos, and representing who we are and how much love we have for each other. It’s an honor for me to be Filipino on stage and to have Filipinos witness this story so we’re all very very proud and so excited and just grateful for the supporters.”
Meanwhile, Justine said that she was “excited for audiences to see the show, especially the Filipino community, because there are certain cultural moments and traditions that are presented on the stage that I’ve never seen in any other production. It’s just so meaningful when you see it. There is this sense of pride when I am going through the motions of making Mano with my lola and saying lola for the first time… And when you (Filipino-Americans) see parts of your culture represented on stage, that you have sincere pride and you will see yourself represented and that is very important especially for the new, young, up-and-coming people in our community, not just in the arts but everywhere.
The community can help promote Filipino culture by watching Filipino-American artists at the Kennedy Center Family Theater for “The Mortification of Fovea Munson” from March 4 to 19, 2023. It is a musical play with music written by a Filipino American, performed by Filipino Americans, with references to Filipino cultural practices. Further details may be found at https://www.kennedy-center.org/…/mortification-of…/.
In case you missed it, the Embassy previously welcomed Regina and Justine to the Embassy for a panel discussion on Filipinos in Theater. More details can be found on that here: https://philippineembassy-dc.org/embassy-puts-the-spotlight-on-local-filipino-american-theater-makers/ ###
