Volume 20 • No. 14 • July 16 - 31, 2024 Publication Mailing Account #41721512
Katrina Czarina Salazar
Ma-Buhay! A New Musical captures the heart of Winnipeg
7 AP Bautista, Daren Dyhengco and Andrea Macasaet
Joseph Sevillo
by Emmie Joaquin Rainbow Stage, in celebration of its 70th anniversary, gave the Filipino Canadian community in Manitoba a priceless gift – the Canadian premiere of Ma-Buhay! A New Musical. For us, the audience who received this precious gift, we laughed, cried, and beamed with pride as we watched Ma-Buhay! A New Musical and its all-Filipino cast conquer Rainbow Stage from June 27 to July 14, 2024. The original musical is also a gift to Winnipeg’s Filipino Canadian community by its creator, Joseph Sevillo, who, through his creative genius, has further enriched the Filipino’s history in the province. Sevillo, a Winnipeg-born and raised musical theatre artist, created, directed, and composed the songs performed in Manitoba’s first all-Filipino musical. In an earlier interview with the Pilipino Express, we asked him what inspired him to create MaBuhay. He said, “The inspiration of my musical is my parents who always supported my love to sing, See MA-BUHAY p14
Andrea Macasaet
Ma-Anne Dionisio
Joy Lazo and Kaitlyn Yago