The following is my Purpose Statement written in application to San Francisco State University, Creative Writing Department’s MFA Playwriting Program.
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In 1995, my journey of writing stories for the stage began with ANG PALENGKE, meaning “The Marketplace” in Filipino. ANG PALENGKE is a play about the dreams of people living in a provincial town in the Philippines. This was ironic because the script was born out of a literal dream. I awoke needing to spill that story onto 65-pages of college-ruled paper. The end result of that movie-in-my-mind was a full production of a cast of 15 actors, 40 dancers, and one magical night.
Although I directed that play, it felt as if that story has directed my life from then on. The summer after having ANG PALENGKE produced, I joined a theatre company called Sinag-tala in Sacramento, CA. It gave me the opportunity to act, sing, dance, and write for a stage I’d later call “home”. The river of life has led me to perform and write with Bindlestiff Studio, the epicenter of Filipino American Performing Arts in San Francisco. Since 2005, I’ve had the fortune of having three of my short plays produced by them – the last being a short 20-Minute entitled, THICKER THAN WINE. It was selected to be the first play performed at the re-opened Bindlestiff Studio stage located in the SOMA.
Like ANG PALENGKE, THICKER THAN WINE’s theme revolves around an oppressed community’s survival as it dangles from the threads of hopes and dreams. Feeling like an under-represented minority in the Theatre Arts Community, it’s my goal to weave these threads into a strong fabric to be displayed on a stage to inspire, induce thought with emotion, and lead others to take action for the betterment of themselves and the community they live in.
Driven to obtain this goal, I’ve sought ways to learn everything about the art form of playwrights. My wallet became lighter with every trip to used bookstores as I expanded my drama library. When able, I took classes with The Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, The Playwright’s Foundation, Asian-American Theatre Company, and Bindlestiff Studio. I’ve been fortunate to have had Anthony Clarvoe, Gary Graves, Philip Kan-Gotanda, and Jeannie Barroga as teachers. I’ve learned a tremendous amount of the craft from books, watching plays, and inspiring instructors, yet I yearned for the education in a collaborative setting which only an established Playwriting Program at a University can provide.
I am confident I can continue to evolve as an artist and person with admission into the MFA Creative Writing Department’s Playwriting Program at San Francisco State University. As previously mentioned, my voice as a writer has been from a Filipino-American perspective, but I know I can grow into being a voice to represent the diverse SFSU community and the San Francisco Bay Area. My first play started with a dream and I hope to continue in sharing this dream with you and many audiences to come.