WAITING (2018) projection+performance

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“Waiting” is an intervention in urban space, a moving image work entitled “Nonlinear” (2016) was projected at the University Gateway commuter sheds along the University Avenue at the University of the Philippines. The performance+projection was open for public viewing and was held on July 3, 2018, 6-9pm, where contemporary dance choreographers Rhosam Prudenciado, Jr. and Sarah Samaniego performed.

The University Gateway commuter shed was designed by National Artist Isabelo ‘Napoleon’ Abueva in 1962. It is an urban fixture I often encounter in UP Diliman. “The gateway is a set of three structures: two commuter sheds flanking a guard post at the center. The unique roofing system of the three appropriates the shape of the paper airplane of childhood.” (Defeo) The two huge commuter sheds are symmetrically positioned on both sides of the length of the University Avenue. They are triangular in form with the highest tip about six meters from the ground with a 45 degrees angle slope from the back part to the tip. This is where contemporary dance choreographers Rhosam Prudenciado, Jr. and Sarah Samaniego performed a structured movement reflecting on the space and its vibe in a busy intersection at night. Since the ceiling had a ribbed surface, the image projection came out distorted across the shed but at a certain angle the image can be viewed in its original perspective. The choreographers moved about against the projected line animation on each of these waiting sheds with the direction to think of what a typical commuter goes thru: positively waiting for a ride, surveying the vicinity for a public utility jeepney or a cab, getting tired of standing still, taking notice of how much time they have lost already, considering other vehicle or route options, and then crossing to the other side of the street to try the same.

The shed is a space of transience, providing refuge from heat and rain as we set forth to our travels. The structure is a covered space where one can stand, and/or sit, while waiting for a ride or a companion. “This is where you wait,” it imposes. I wanted for viewers to take this pause and see it as the fragment of urban experience that it is: a reflection of how urban forms guide how we maneuver space, interrupt the flow of our movement, dictate where we should be and put us in our place. The awareness of these imposing structures of urban puppetry unknowingly make us self-defiant. For what is the city but an order-imposing structure to our environment and our lives.

This pause and stillness is a private experience we share with other urban dwellers and travelers in a public urban space, that is the city. The projection and structured movement performed on July 3, 2018 sought to activate the infrastructure as a space of contemplation. Being there alone, waiting for a ride, while watching multiple vehicles pass by, allows you time to reflect on your environment. That commuter shed is one of the places where I am confronted with the contrasting characteristics of city living: being one against many, moving slow in a fast paced environment, crowding in structures within vast places, staying low against tall/towering structures, private and public spatial negotiations, and being in a hurry while you need to wait. It is a daily experience that commuters encounter in Metro Manila but we don’t usually think about.

There was no music for this piece but the sound of the streets, the vehicles passing by and their horns, mufflers and engines. The regular light bulb of the shed was removed and there was a flood light at the base of each shed so the dancers may see where they were moving and they would be visible in the photo and video documentation. Aside from that, the performers had the headlights of the vehicles as light source that night, which was irregular and unpredictable, as with the sound. Their movement included the regular gestures of commuters: of looking, walking and waiting. They sat on the chairs and stood on it and moved with the projected line drawings of wires, posts and towers against the ceiling of the shed. Afterwhich, Sarah crossed the street and both dancers performed under one shed, eventually walking along the street, crossing it, and getting a ride.

The jeepney is a common mode of public transportation in Manila. It has been a cultural icon, but unfortunately it is threatened to be phased out by the government.

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