Category: Programs
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Meet the Heartbeat: CIRCA Pintig Announces Inaugural Acting Ensemble
As CIRCA Pintig celebrates its landmark 35th season, the organization is taking a historic step forward by establishing its first-ever official acting ensemble. This troupe of talented Filipino working actors and performers serves as the creative pintig—the heartbeat—of the organization, dedicated to sharing Filipino stories across Chicago’s theatrical landscape. To celebrate this milestone, the community…
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Arts & Healing Across Communities
Arts & Healing Across Communities uses performance, storytelling, ritual, and participatory theater to transform grief into resilience and isolation into solidarity. Rooted in the Filipino philosophy of Kapwa — shared humanity — this initiative invites Illinois communities into powerful spaces of reflection, healing, and collective engagement. https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/arts-and-healing Performance & Talkback I (3/28, 7pm – 9pm…
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PABASA
by Rowena Luna PABASA, a traditional Lenten Filipino Catholic devotion, is one of the oldest Holy Week tradition which begun in the 17th century. It was started by Spanish Missionaries in melodic form and translated into Tagalog so the Filipino indigenous people could be familiar with it. It is a continuous chanting of a long…
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A Proposed Blueprint for Filipino Americans’ Political Recognition
During every election cycle, Filipino American voters bring a cluster of priorities highlighting economic needs, immigration anxieties, and health care, among other issues in the mix but these community concerns rarely surface in mainstream political narratives. The core issue behind this absence in the political landscape that tends to perpetuate Filipinos’ under-recognition is not a…
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Kusina ng Bayan Fundraising Update
By Ryan Viloria Status Report We are excited to share a progress update on Kusina ng Bayan, aka The Community’s Kitchen! Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, we’ve reached 25% of our fundraising goal, raising $16,250 toward restoring this vital community kitchen. Special shout out to Alpha Nicolasin for leading a fundraising team that…
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HOUSE OF HOPE
REIMAGINING THE RIZAL CENTER AMIDST THE FAST-CHANGING COMMUNITY The Rizal Center as our Home Away From Home is our House of Harmonious Transformation: A Story of Community Bayanihan In the heart of the Rizal Center, where Filipinos and Filipino Americans echo with the struggles of unemployment, lack of food, health disparities, stale cultural activities, lack…
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Spirit of Bayanihan: A Call for Supply Donations
As we start the new year, the Rizal Center is once again alive with activity! In fact, we are planning for more events and programs than ever before, shaping up 2026 to be our most active year yet! For all this new activity, Rizal Center is led and operated by kind-hearted and generous volunteers, ensuring…
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Are We Empowered Yet?
That Filipino Americans are frequently labeled as “invisible Asians,” has been a topic widely written about — notably by Filipino writers themselves. It’s a well-intentioned reflective approach into understanding the reasons behind Filipino Americans’ invisible classification — according to the usual metrics by which races and ethnicities are observed and processed. Asian immigrant communities assume…
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CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS AND CAST
Garet: Pinoys in Chicago — A Play About Migration, Morality & Compassion In honor of Filipino American History Month this October, Rizal Center presents Garet: Pinoys in Chicago at the Little Theater of Rizal Center. Garet is a powerful, character-driven play that explores the emotional, moral, and cultural realities of Filipino life abroad. Set in…