PANTOMINA

Pantomina (Spanish for pantomime) was originally a wedding dance from the towns of Bicol's Estandarte and Sorsogon subregions. This dance is tradionally performed during wedding festivities by the couple and their visitors. The dance is still popular in the Bicol Region even up to this time.

The pantomina is very popular in the northern part of Samar especially in towns of Allen and Capul - both directly facing Bicolandia. Traditionally, musicians accompanying the dancers pause from playing the pantomina music to allow the dancers to wipe their perspiration. The wiping of perspiration has become a little flirty, with the male dancer--as expected--offering his own handkerchief for the woman to wipe herself. The delighted audience would, as expected, tease the couple (especially if the two are young and unmarried) as doing a "love pantomime" and the musicians would immediately resume playing the music. After the love pantomine has waned, the focus of the pantomina returns to the dance itself.

Pantomina was among the first folk dances to have its dance steps notated. The pantomina was featured in Francisca Reyes Aquino's first-ever folk dance book, Philippine Folk Dances and Games, published in February 1926. The dance, according to Aquino, was also called Salampati during the Spanish occupation.

special thanks to:

Aquarius Records and http://en.wikipilipinas.org/