An evening of MADness
Scoping MADFest 2014
In the SM MOA Concert Grounds sits an asymmetrical sculpture with details constructed from PVC pipes, and wood.
What exactly IS it? With a huge twisted loofah-like thing on its back, it looks like a mutant monster.
Five performers with colorful costumes made from recycled material walk on and around it before slowly dancing their way to the giant stage around four hundred feet away.
There was music (from top): Kjwan, Kate Torralba, Diego Castillo of Sandwich, Josh Villena of Autotelic
MADness
They stare and interact with individuals in the audience who are either enthralled or confused (and reeling from the Friday night traffic) but take photos anyway; hey, this is MADFest 2014.
The interactive performance of theatre group Sipat Lawin may allude to madness (or a commentary on environmental issues?) but they also address the first three letters of the festival: music, arts, and dance.
Presented by Solar Network and JACK TV, the festival would have been easy to dismiss on the surface as a television company showing its properties on ground. But it seemed more than that.
Kimbra herself was a work of art.
Diverse
The left-field Sipat Lawin formally opening the performances clearly showed an open palette; strange to contemporary audiences sure but then again most art does provoke reactions.
Near the main stage, stand-up performers from Comedy Cartel delivered their punchlines between musical acts (Chip Balbuena’s witty observations on local modern culture were very well-received).
The musically diverse line-up featured both upcoming and established artists Toni B, Kate Torralba, BP Valenzuela, Autotelic, Cheats, Flying Ipis, Sandwich, Kjwan, and Imago and headliner kooky Kiwi music phenom Kimbra.
And Sipat Lawin provided a kind of dance... (Photo by Francis Brew)
Now, if only the food were as diverse as the acts
Spread throughout the grounds were art installations by Leeroy New, Jagnus Design Studio, and ImagineNation Studio; Secret Studio did live art.
There were dance-offs and dance demos in spots; TEAM VIBE was the featured dance group.
Overall, the festival did live up to the promise of its acronym—though I had hoped that the food choices on the festival grounds were as diverse as the acts.
