Author of the Month: Christine Bellen

Si Bb. Christine Bellen, guro at manunulat, ay naglunsad ng isang koleskyon ng mga dula na may pamagat na Batang Rizal at Iba Pang mga Dula (Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2016). Ito ay inilunsad sa publiko noong Hunyo 20, 2016 sa Aklatang Rizal, Ateneo De Manila University. Pinaulankan niya ang aking imbitasyon na ma-feature sa aking blog. Sa panayam na ito, sinagot ni Bb. Bellen ang mga tanong tungkol sa pagsusulat ng mga dula para sa kabataan at sa mga mambabasa na may hilig sa dula at dulaan.

Narito ang panayam ko kay Bb. Bellen.

1. Mukhang nag branch out ka ng genre. Bakit dula at Bakit si Rizal?

Hindi ako nagbranch out ng genre. May ganun ba sa Pilipinas? Palagay ko, maraming mga manunulat sa atin ang may mga major na trabaho sa isa o dalawang genre pero may kakayanan at interes din sa iba pang genre. Halimbawa si Egay. Nagsimula siya bilang isang makata. Wala namang nagtanong sa kanya kung bakit siya nagmaikling kuwentong pambata at YA. Sa kaso ko, isang dekada ang antolohiya ng mga trabaho ko para sa dulaang pambata kaya ibig sabihin ay kasabay ito ng mga trabaho ko rin sa pagsusulat ng mga kuwentong pambata, at kasabay rin ng pag-aaral ng Ph D para sa panitikang pambata. Nakikita ko ito bilang mga trabahong may organikong pagkakaugnay dahil sa ito naman talaga ang interes ng manunulat. Magkakaiba lamang tayo ng kombinasyon ng mga isinusulat.

2. Ano ang kaibahan Sa pagsusulat ng dula kumpara sa nobela o maikling kuwento?

Para sa akin, nakikita ko ring hindi hiwalay ang pagsusulat para sa mga bata at ang pagsusulat ng dula kung genre ang pag-uusapan dahil kapwa visual ang style ng pagsusulat at imahinasyon sa kanila.

Ang kaibahan sa dula, ay dayalogo ang isinusulat mo. Hindi tulad sa nobela at maikling kuwento. Pinakamatingkad na elemento sa dula ay ang characterization dahil ito rin ang magiging motibasyon at dahilan ng pag-usad ng naratibo.

3. Iilan lang ang mga manunulat ng Panitikang Pambata or YA lit ang sumasabak Sa pagsusulat ng dula. Ano kaya ang dahilan? Kailangan ba na may magsasadula nito kaya dapat affiliated ang manunulat Sa isang theatre group?

Kaunti ang sumasabak sa pagsusulat ng dula dahil ibang passion rin ang teatro. Hindi ka lang nagsusulat kundi bahagi ka ng isang malaking produksyon. Kung sa picture book, katrabaho mo lang ang illustrator at editor, sa dula, produksyon talaga. May teknikal na aspekto rin itong kasama. Ikaw bilang mandudula, sa katunayan ang unang "nakaka-envision" nito sa mga dula mo. Ikaw ang unang direktor, aktor, set designer, props, ilaw, at maging musika.

Hindi naman kailangang affiliated ka sa isang theater group.

Sa kaso ko, naimbitahan akong magsalin una ng isang dula ni John Cocteau sa UP Dulaang Lab. Tinanggap ko kasi gusto ko talaga ang teatro. Mahilig akong manuod at kapag nanunuod ako, may kakayanan akong umawain ang skeleton ng dula kahit hindi ko pa sila mapangalanan dati. Siguro, dahil passion ko ito kaya't may ganung ekstensyon ang pag-unawa ko sa dula. Hindi pa natatapos ang dula ko kay cocteau ay tinawagan na ako ng PETA. Dun na nagsimula ang lahat. Sunod sunod na ang proyekto ko sa kanila at sa iba pang tanghalan.

Para sa akin, isa uri rin ng mahusay na kuwento ay kung nakikita mo ito sa iba pang medium. Hindi ko sinasabing hindi maganda ang mga nananatiling kuwento. May elemento siguro sa mga kuwentong naisasadula o naisasa-pelikula na alam mong hindi lang ito mananatili bilang kuwento. Sa isang banda, may mga kuwentong, magandang basahin at namnamin sa anyo niya bilang kuwento.

4. Ano ang pinaka paborito mong dula sa koleksyon?

Pinaka-paborito ko ang Batang Rizal saka Hagibis.

Dear School Librarian In Action: Mga Kuwentong Pambata na Taglay ang Saya at May Kakayanang Mapagbago ang Ating Lipunan

Noong Lunes, Setyembre 21, 2015, pinadalhan ako ni Augie Ebreo ng ganitong tanong:
 

Mga programa at hanay ng kwentong Pilipinong pambanta na kayang maghasik ng kulturang Pilipino ayon sa panlasa ng kasalukuyang panahon at paano po ilalapat ito ng may diin subalit may saya na kayang magpakilos ng pagbabago ng ating lipunan?

Bago pa man ako nagbigay kay Augie ng sagot, tinanong ko muna kung para saan ang pangangalangan niya ng mga aklat pambata na may kakayanang makapagbago ng ating lipunan. Gagawa pala siya ng isang storytelling program kung saan ang mga bata at kabataan ang mag-aaral ng kuwento upang ipalabas ito sa isang puppet show. Subalit, may iba pang pakay si Augie. Ito ay ang pagnanais niya na "makapaglahad ng kwentong umuugnay sa kasalukuyang takbo ng mga pangyayari ng kasalukuyang panahon. May kapangyarihan po kasi ang kwento na magbuo at magwasak o magporma ng ugali ng isang tao. Mga kwentong radikal pero mahinahaon pa rin ang dating sa mga bata na di magtutulak sa marahas na kaisipan".

Narito ang sagot ko sa kanya.

Active non-violence ba ang stand na gusto mong iparating? Kase, limitado ang printed book at fiction pero, pwede ka gumamit ng biographies nina Gandhi, Edith Stein at Martin Luther King. Gawan mo ito ng script o short play, musical o puppet show. Pwede mo rin gamitin ang Modern Day Heroes ng The Bookmark.

Baka makatulong rin sa iyo ang folklore. Mamimili ka lang talaga ng kuwento na may concept at theme ng Justice, Peace at Integrity. Halimbawa, ang Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears ni Veena Aardema. Isang African Folk Tale ito. Yung Alamat ng Ampalaya (Adarna House) ni Augie Rivera, social justice ang tema ng alamat. Ang parusa sa magnanakaw na Ampalaya ay ang nakuha niyang lahat ng lasa, kulay at ganda kaya siya ay naging mapait. Yung Alamat ng Lamok (Anvil), ni Christine Bellen, kuwento ng paglilinis. Kailangan linisin natin ang sarili, ang kapaligiran at ang bayan para matalo natin ang salot ng lipunan. Ang mensahe ng kuwento ay kalinisan at katapangan. Dapat may tapang tayong maglinis muna ng sarili para maalagaan natin ang kapaligiran at hindi tayo masakop ng mga maduduming higante.

 

Pwede rin ang The Greediest of Rajahs and the Whitest of Clouds (Adarna House) ni Honoel Ibardolaza. Tungkol sa isang sakim at corrupt na rajah. Makamit niya ang parusa dahil sa kanyang kasakiman. Basahin mo rin ang Pilandok series, lalo na yung tungkol kay Datu Usman (Adarna House). Ang mensahe nito ay napapanahon. Kailangang maging kritikal sa pag-iisip upang hindi maloko ng mga sakim na pinuno. Ang kuwento ni Ingolok (Cacho Publishing), ni Rene Villanueva, tungkol sa mga aliens na kain lang ng kain hangang sa kapaligiran na nila ang kinakain nila. Naubos ang kanilang planeta.

Napukaw ni Augie Ebreo ang aking atensyon na mag-isip at maghanap pa ng mga aklat pambata na may tema ng pagbabago para sa ating lipunan. Abangan ang ikalawang post, sapagkat, may susunod pa!

NBDB Booklatan in Malabon and Then Some

A week long Booklatan was held in the last week of March by the National Book Development Board (NBDB) in Malabon National High School. I was there last weekend as an invited speaker on library marketing. The event had several surprises for me.

Surprise number 1: Ken Spillman

Who would have thought Ken Spillman, author and literacy advocate, would be there? He flew to Manila to award a grant of PHP 10,000.00 to a Filipino author as additional funds for him/her to attend the Asian Festival of Chidlren's Content in Singapore this May 2014. That lucky author happened to be Genaro Gojo Cruz. When he learned that NBDB set up a Booklatan, he volunteered to tell stories to the kids there.

When we met, we had a book swap. I gave him copies of my book since the last time we saw each other, he gave me copies of his books. And yes, Ken, I still owe you a neat write up and a book review. Before he left Malabon, he handed to me his book donations to Sambat Trust UK's next school library project. I hope the next time we meet, I'll be able to take Ken to the schools that Sambat Trust UK has adopted.

Surprise number 2: Mayor Lenlen Oreta, the storytelling mayor of Malabon

I saw how Mayor Lenlen Oreta read aloud an Adarna Big Book for kids aged 4-7. Seated on straw mats, they eagerly listened to the mayor read aloud the story of two puppies, siblings who have opposite personalities. Mayor Oreta is a pro. He has questions prepared for pre, during and post reading. I learned later on that he visits schools once a week to do storytelling sessions. Now that's a literacy initiative worth emulating.

Surprise number 3: Malabon Teachers don't know who Augie Rivera and Christine Bellen are.

Two authors born in Malabon and Malabon teachers must know who they are and the contributions these two talented authors have given to Philippine Children's Literature.

Surprise number 4: Audience were all teachers

I expected to speak to Malabon librarians, but I was the only librarian in the room. So I had to adjust my stance to cater teachers' needs and interests. It's a good thing that reading and literacy are two concepts that teachers share with librarians. It was not at all difficult for me to make adjustments. However, the absence of librarians in a workshop meant for them is a cause of alarm. While the local LGU and the DepEd division they're sent out memos, librarians were excluded from attending. I learned about this from one of the participants.

Thinking about this, I feel that advocacy initiatives of librarianship in the political, educational and cultural aspects of Philippine society must be in place. What do I mean by this? I'll reserve a separate post on library advocacy. For now, it is good to talk about the relevance of libraries and the important roles librarians do. Those who are given this opportunity should do more than talk about topics, trends and issues that concern librarians  and the profession. It is essential to emphasize integration and collaboration with allied professionals. Teachers can set up reading and literacy centers. True. Librarians are there to sustain these reading centers and transform them into learning hubs where readers can critically think on their own, make well informed decisions and be useful citizens who can contribute to the growth of the community.

Filipino librarians, our work is cut out for us.

Storytelling At Sta. Catalina's College

I was in the Grade School department of Sta. Catalina College this morning for a storytelling session. I performed a book based storytelling of Christine Bellen's Mga Kwento ni Lola Basyang to a group of very excited Kinder, Grade 1, 2 and 3 students. In between stories, I did participative oral telling styles that delighted my young audience and the teachers who were present during the one-hour session.

Ms. Jo, the librarian in charge confessed that it was their first time to have storytelling sessions in the grade school. They should thank Anvil Publishing for putting up the gig. Ms. Jo is keen for another storytelling session sometime soon.

In the second session, I had a warmer crowd amongst Grade 4, 5 and 6 students. One high school class joined in the fun and they were just as attentive. For this session, I performed Ang Alamat ng Lamok and Anting-anting from the Lola Basyang series of Christine Bellen.

I thought it would be difficult telling the books from the Lola Basyang series. The stories could be long for younger readers. But the narratives seem to spring from a radio script so the effect was ideal for read aloud. There are so many verbs to play on and animate. The dialogues between characters are short but engaging. For the record, it is still Dr. Luis Gatmatian's books that has given me the greatest challenge to story tell.

Storytelling Framework Sampler

Here is a sample plan for storytelling that can be used in the classroom. Following the basic framework, it observes the basic structure of reading instruction to formalize the learning of skills like characterization, drawing conclusions, comprehension (through context clues) and thinking skills like making inferences and critical thinking.

Title of Story:          Ang Mga Kwento Ni Lola Basyang ni Severino Reyes: The Prince of the Birds

 

Retold by Christine Bellen

Illustrated by Frances Alcaraz

Published by Anvil Pub. Inc. 2005

Target learners/students: Grade 5-6

 Objectives:

1. To understand the different character traits in the story (the King, Princess Singsing and the Prince of Birds);
2. To make a conclusion of a character based on actions and decisions he/she made in the story;
3. To enjoy and appreciate a story read aloud as a class/group (Readers’ Theatre) and extend the literary experience through role playing of the story’s basic parts;
4. To learn the concept and meaning of the phrase kept his promise

Pre-activity:

1. Unlock the phrase kept his promise as used in context.
2. Present a paragraph using kept his promise.

Mark and Peter agreed to bring an extra sandwich and bottled water for Ms. Dela Cruz, their coach and teacher, if either of them wins in the Spelling Bee contest. Peter won and kept his promise to Mark.

What does the phrase, kept his promise, mean?

c. Motive question – Why didn’t the King keep his promise to the Prince of Birds?

 

Storytelling Proper & During Reading Activities:

1. Introduce the book, the writers, illustrators and publisher of the book and its series.
2. Distribute the script for the Readers’ Theatre to the class.
3. During reading activities:

 

	Princess Singsing	The King of Tongkiang	The Prince of Birds
Physical descriptions   Attitudes, habits and decisions   General traits and characteristics

 

4. Go back to the motive question so students can answer it.

 

Note: The teacher/storyteller may write comprehension questions for the during-reading-activity part of the session, or have small group discussions, like a literary circle as an additional post activity. Differentiated activities is another option for the teacher/storyteller and the students to do.

 

Post Activity:

Divide the class in groups in preparation for a role playing of the basic parts of the story.

 

 

Planned and prepared by:

Zarah Gagatiga

For the Anvil Publishing Inc. sponsored workshop at Powerbooks Trinoma, April 13, 2009.