Pangalay by PPAC (Philippine Performing Arts Company)

A dance form traditionally performed by the Tausug people of the southern Philippines, this dance is distinct because it is characterized by hand movements that resemble the movement of ocean waves, enhanced by long, metal fingernails worn by the dancers. Filipino choreographer Ligaya Amilbangsa, who has done extensive research on this dance form, sees the Pangalay as distinctly “Asian,” describing it as resembling Indian, Javanese, Thai (Siamese), Burmese, and Cambodian styles (Amilbangsa 1999).1 In contrast, Filipinos who recognize the Pangalay claim it as a “Philippine folk dance.” How then, we might ask, does a distinctly “Asian” dance permit an identification as “Filipino”?