The Body as a Battlefield of Spirit: Asia Butoh Gathering 2026 Descends on Manila

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 

In the quiet tension between a falling leaf and a rising storm, the art of Butoh finds its home. This February, Manila transforms into the epicenter of this "dance of darkness" as the Asia Butoh Gathering (ABG) 2026 convenes practitioners from across the continent for a landmark three-day festival.

Titled "Moving Roots, Moving Cultures," the gathering is more than a performance series; it is a profound cultural bridge marking 70 years of Japan-Philippines diplomatic relations. From February 6 to 8, artists from Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, and the Philippines will unite to explore the shared pulse of an Asian identity through embodied movement.

A Living Ecology: Butoh in the Time of Ecological Crisis

While Butoh was born in the post-war soil of Japan, ABG 2026 recognizes it as a living, evolving ecology. The festival’s curatorial frame, "Butoh in the Time of Ecological Crisis," addresses a world grappling with environmental collapse and the desperate hope for renewal.

The visual heart of the festival is a haunting stage installation: a floating, uprooted tree—suspended in mid-air, wounded yet stubbornly alive. It serves as a visceral symbol of the tension between decay and resilience, mirroring the festival's central performance program, "Falling Earth, Moving Sky". This performance arc moves from the "Falling Earth"—gestures of extinction and grief—to the "Moving Sky," where bodies search for new forms of kinship and repair.

The Program: From Critical Discourse to Embodied Magic

The festival offers a rich tapestry of intellectual and physical immersion across multiple venues:

Dialogue & Workshops (Feb 6): The event opens at WhyNot Manila with roundtable conversations featuring speakers from nine Asian regions, moderated by Katrina Stuart Santiago, and a keynote by Anton Juan. The evening transitions into the physical with a workshop led by the renowned Yuko Kawamoto.

Archives & Cinema (Feb 7): Attendees can experience a screening of the 84-minute film Darkness Princess Bamboo, followed by lecture-presentations from Japanese masters Kae Ishimoto, Tenko Ima, and Yuko Kawamoto.

The Grand Finale (Feb 8): The festival culminates at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium (RCBC) with the ticketed performance "Falling Earth, Moving Sky," a powerful exploration of ancestry, land, and gender.

Festival At-a-Glance

Feature Details

Dates

February 6-8, 2026 

Theme

Moving Roots, Moving Cultures 

Primary Venue

WhyNot Manila (Makati) & Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium (RCBC) 

Core Philosophy

Kapwa—shared self and interconnectedness 

Ticketing & Registration

The festival invites both the curious and the devoted to join this process of reflection and exchange. While many daytime sessions are free, the closing performance is a ticketed event with Early Bird rates available until January 31, 2026.

Early Bird: ₱800 

General Admission: ₱1,000 

Student/PWD: ₱800 (or ₱600 with Early Bird) 

President Marcos leads launch of key education initiatives with PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan Programs

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 



LAOAG CITY, 23 JANUARY 2026 — President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Friday led the rollout of major education initiatives under the “Programa para sa Buti ng Bayan at Mamamayan: Galing, Akses, Batid at Angat Tungo sa Yaman ng Bayan” or the PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan Programs at the Ilocos Norte Centennial Arena in Laoag City.



The launch formed part of the 2nd Joint Education Trifocal Management Committee Meeting of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Department of Education (DepEd), and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), with the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II). The event highlighted the national government’s unified approach to strengthening access, equity, and relevance across the Philippine education system under the Bagong Pilipinas agenda.

 



Officials from the education agencies, partner national government offices, local government units, higher education institutions, and other education stakeholders attended the program. Around 5,000 participants, including high school students and Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries, witnessed the rollout of the initiatives.



A central highlight of the program was the ceremonial signing of the joint memorandum circular on the Policies and Guidelines for the Bagong Pilipinas Merit Scholarship Program (BPMSP) by CHED, DepEd, and TESDA. The guidelines establish a unified framework for the transparent and coordinated implementation of the program across the education sector.



The BPMSP, representing Galing in GABAY, is a competitive, merit-based scholarship program open to top-performing senior high school graduates nationwide from both public and private schools, including the Philippine Science High School System, as well as qualified holders of TESDA National Certificates. Scholars may pursue degree programs aligned with priority sectors such as healthcare, engineering and digital technology, agriculture and fisheries, education, and financial services in public or private higher education institutions that meet quality standards. Likewise, scholars may also choose to study TESDA-identified priority diploma programs offered by registered Technical Vocational Institutions. These include courses in industry sectors such as agriculture, ICT, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing and semiconductor. Applicants to this program must have attained a minimum General Weighted Average of 90% or its equivalent.

For Academic Year 2026–2027, the program targets 20,000 scholars nationwide.


TESDA Secretary Kiko Benitez said the BPMSP supports TESDA students in combining technical skills with further education. “Certificate holders can choose to continue their studies and complement the skills they’ve already earned, opening up new possibilities,” he added.


Representing Akses was the Project “Patuloy na Edukasyon, Patuloy na Pag-Ahon” (Project PEPA), a nationwide information caravan designed to improve access to accurate and timely information on government-funded education opportunities for 4Ps families. This aims to reach nearly 490,000 senior high school graduates from 4Ps households across all regions, who are eligible for the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) Program upon enrollment in public or CHED-recognized private higher education institutions.

For Batid, CHED launched TANAW, a national higher education data visualization platform that integrates institutional, enrollment, scholarship, and graduate outcomes data to support transparency, informed student choice, and evidence-based policy and planning.

CHED Chairperson Shirley Agrupis emphasized the importance of timely and accurate data in helping education stakeholders make better choices. “Sound decisions also require reliable information. CHED TANAW provides a national, data-driven platform that allows students and families to verify institutions, programs, and quality indicators using official data, reducing misinformation and uncertainty in education choices. Reaching those farthest from information is equally important,” she said.

Education Secretary Sonny Angara led the oath-taking of more than 700 newly promoted public school teachers under DepEd’s Expanded Career Progression (ECP) System. Angat, as embodied in GABAY, reflects the administration’s commitment to recognizing merit, uplifting educators, and strengthening the education workforce.


“For years, public school teachers dedicated themselves to their students while waiting for long-delayed promotions, with some only reaching senior ranks near retirement and away from the classroom they loved. The ECP addresses long-standing delays in teacher promotions by linking career advancement to merit and performance,” DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara said.


CHED and the Pag-IBIG Fund likewise signed a Memorandum of Understanding for Project BALAY: Building Access to Learning for Students, a strategic partnership focused on developing affordable student housing, faculty and staff accommodation, and higher education infrastructure, particularly in state universities and colleges. CHED Chairperson Agrupis and Pag-IBIG Fund Chief Executive Officer Marilene Acosta underscored the project’s role in improving learning outcomes and student completion in higher education institutions.

Taken together, these initiatives demonstrate a coordinated and integrated approach to education reform across all levels.

CHED, DepEd, and TESDA reaffirmed their to working hand in hand to implement the PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan Program effectively. Yaman, the culmination of GABAY, represents mga mamamayang may kakayahan at oportunidad or Filipinos equipped with knowledge and skills to contribute productively to nation-building.

Under the Bagong Pilipinas agenda, the government continues to position education as a key driver of inclusive growth, workforce development, and long-term national competitiveness.

Sec. Angara, Rep. Sandro Marcos lead teachers’ oath in Laoag as DepEd eyes 100k career upgrades by 2026

Wazzup Pilipinas!? 







LAOAG CITY, ILOCOS NORTE, 23 January 2026 — As part of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s education agenda, Education Secretary Sonny Angara and House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos on Friday led the mass oath-taking of 789 public school teachers in the province whose careers were upgraded under the Department of Education’s Expanded Career Progression (ECP) system, as the agency eyes to deliver up to 100,000 teacher career upgrades nationwide by 2026.

The mass oath-taking was conducted alongside the administration’s Programa para sa Buti ng Bayan at Mamamayan: Galing, Akses, Batid at Angat Tungo sa Yaman ng Bayan” or the PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan—an integrated set of initiatives jointly implemented by the Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

“Let us build a Bagong Pilipinas where education is a sturdy foundation for stronger families, a more capable workforce, and a more progressive nation,” the President’s message said.

Of the newly promoted teachers, many had waited years—some decades—for advancement due to limited plantilla items and a promotion system dependent on natural vacancies. More than 2,000 additional teachers in Ilocos are also currently undergoing processing for promotion under the ECP, with their reclassification documents already submitted.


Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the reform champions teachers’ welfare and professional growth, aligned with the principles of the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers while strengthening instructional quality by keeping experienced educators where they matter most—inside classrooms.

“Hindi na kailangang umalis sa silid-aralan para umangat. Sa ilalim ng ECP, kinikilala natin ang husay sa pagtuturo at binibigyan ito ng malinaw na landas,” Angara said.

Angara said the reform is meant to recognize teachers who have spent years refining their craft in the classroom, citing educators like Teacher Lilliane Z. Tarriga of Filipino East Elementary School, who was promoted to Teacher IV after serving as Teacher I for 37 years.

“Para sa atin ito. Para sa lahat ng guro na nagbuhos ng oras at sakripisyo sa serbisyo. Yung statement na walang teacher ang magre-retire na Teacher I, sabi ni PBBM, yun talaga ang nag-motivate sa akin. Salamat talaga kay President Bongbong at kay DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara,” Teacher Lilliane said.



As the administration moves to synchronize reforms across basic, higher, and technical education, the ceremony stood as both a culmination and a signal that education reform is now being executed across institutions, ranks, and regions.