VANCOUVER-. Another “riot” is about to unfold in the city on July 23-24, 2011. Only this time, it will be “riotous” fun, great food, and non-stop entertainment as “HATAW PINOY 2011”, the Philippine Summer Festival unfolds at the Forum of Vancouver’s Olympic landmark, the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE). The Filipino Canadian Cultural Heritage Society (FCCHS) announced its second staging of the event, which was launched last year at the Richmond Olympic oval grounds and came out to be the largest summer event of the Filipino community.
With more than 120,000 Filipino Canadians in BC, where a good 96,000 are scattered all over the Metro Vancouver area, some 10%-15% are expected to grace the festivities, with various representative groups coming from the neighbouring cities of Kelowna, Kamloops, Victoria, Whistler, Squamish, Pemberton and from across the border in Seattle,WA. Last year’s celebration also saw the participation of some families who came all the way from Calgary, Alberta and planned to have their clan reunion by attending the Summer Festival at the Oval.
The biggest highlight of this year’s event program line-up is the visit of GMA “Kapuso” stars gracing the event and providing the main entertainment- led by multi-awarded movie actor/performer and film director, CESAR MONTANO, best known for his dynamic, award-winning portrayal of our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal in the movie “Jose Rizal”. The film has become legendary and unprecedented as it portrays Philippine society during the Spanish colonization of the Philippines and its relevance up to the present day.Unknown to many, Montano, also known by his nickname Buboy, is also a singer and has embarked on a music career with the release of his album ”Subok lang” in the year 2000. He has also ventured into film production, as well as directing, with “Panaghoy sa Suba” as his directorial film debut. He has won numerous acting awards, such as Hollywood’s The Great Raid, Panaghoy sa Suba, José Rizal, Muro Ami and Bagong Buwan.
Also joining Montano at the festival is ASAP champion, and two-time platinum singing sensation RACHELLE ANN GO, a former Viva talent, who is now a cast member of Party Pilipinas of the “Kapuso” Channel. She started her television debut with Eat Bulaga! She released a number of platinum and gold recordings for Viva before her homecoming to the GMA Network, her home studio.
As more entertainers fill the two-day festival show directed by seasoned director Robert J. Tongko, sponsors and stall holders keep signing up to make the event a worthy Summer spectacle for the Filipino Canadian community. Big raffle prizes are also at stake during the celebration, which is expected to overshadow the attendance of last year’s Richmond oval event, since PNE is at the heart of the biggest concentration of Filipinos in the lower mainland.
“FCCHS, in this year’s Hataw Pinoy, presents a totally different spectacle from what we had last year,” says Rey Fortaleza, its President. “As we’ve seen and felt the importance of doing worthwhile activities for the community to maintain its vibrant connectivity and fellowship, we always endeavor to develop a creative presentation of each event, focusing more on enhancing the relationship of every Filipino Canadian within his community circle. And surely this year will be a blast!” he added. Those who are still interested to obtain presence in the event, either as Sponsor or Stall Holder, may call Rey Fortaleza at 778.895.6667, Kuya.Alvin at 604.773.6641, Tita Soc at 604.833.2023 or Tony Mangiliman at 604.783.1272.