BARANGAY Lucao’s street dancers topped the Gilon! Gilon! Ed Baley Street Dancing Competition, the opening day highlight of the 2009 Bangus Festival on April 15.

The Lucao contingent received the P80,000 first prize from the Bangus Festival Committee headed by Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez.

Lucao dethroned the defending champion Mangin which bagged second place for P60,000, and will represent Dagupan in the bigger Festivals of the North street dancing competition on April 27.

The Gilon! Gilon! EdBaley created an opportunity where our unity and creativity as a community are revealed and I’m happy to see that the participating barangays and schools really poured their hearts out into it,” the vice mayor said.

Of the 29 contingents, other groups that emerged victorious were Bolosan, third place, P50,000; Dagupan City National High School, fourth place, P40,000; and Tambac, fifth place, P30,000.

Bolosan won the best in choreography prize and pocketed another P20,000; while Pogo Chico was chosen as best in costume and also earned P20,000.

Others received a consolation prize of P3,000 each.

The panel of judges was composed of some of the country’s top choreo-graphers, including: Peter De Vera and Franco Velas (National Commission for Culture and the Arts), Hilly Vann dela Cruz (Sinukwan Performing Arts), Rebecca Lim-Nulud and Sheila Marie Marquez (Saint Louis University), Romarico Sunga (Angeles City National Trade School) and Alfredo Niner (Juan G. Macaraeg National High School, Binalonan).

Fernandez said the success of this year’s competition, next year’s Gilon! Gilon! Ed Baley will surely be another most anticipated event.

The Gilon! Gilon! Ed Baley was originally conceptualized by the vice mayor and Mayor Alipio Fernandez Jr. in 1995 when Dagupan City celebrated its 50th golden year.

Vice Mayor Fernandez said the Festivals of the North street-dancing competition can be expected to be grander with the participation of groups from different parts of the Ilocos Region, Baguio, Pampanga, and the Visayas including Iloilo and Cebu, featuring their respective festivals.

Nine cities and 26 municipalities have already confirmed participation.

Street dancers from Cebu’s Sinulog Festival, Iloilo’s Dinagyang Festival, Baguio’s Panagbenga, and the Pandan Festival street dancers are participating in the event as guest performers.

“This is the first time in the city’s history that some 4,000 to 5,000 street dancers will perform in the city streets in one single event,” the vice mayor said.

Other Bangus Festival events lined up are the Hataw Sayaw Hataw Dagupan dance competition on April 17, 21 and 24, Tunog Bangus on April 15, 16, 19 and 26, Extreme Off Road Challenge on April 18 and 19, Singing Bangus (patterned from ABS-CBN’s Singing Bee) on April 16, 20 and 23, Halo-Halo Festival on April 23 and 24, Bangus Cookfest on April 24.—LM

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