Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Tito Rollie's Life before Teatro Pilipino

Born: March 5, 1937, Gagalangin, Tondo, Manila
Died: July 7, 1997, Quezon City

Tinio was born in Gagalangin, Tondo, Manila but has roots in Nueva Ecija, from where came his parents Dominador Tinio and Marciana Santos. Tinio married actor Ella Luansing, and they have two children, one of whom, Victoria, is also an actor. He finished primary education at the Lakandula Elementary School in Tondo, 1948, and secondary school at the Letran High School, 1951. He obtained a bachelor of philosophy degree at the University of Santo Tomas in 1955 and a master in fine arts degree in creative writing from the State University of Iowa in 1958. He finished a non-degree course in theater arts through a British Council scholarship grant at Bristol University in 1968. He taught English, Filipino, and theater arts courses at the Ateneo de Manila University, 1958-1975, where he headed the English Department, and later the Department of Filipino.

He first wrote poetry in English, but after his return from the United States, returned to the language of his roots, the Tagalog in which are written his three collections: Sitsit sa Kulilig (Whistling at Cicadas), 1972; Dunung-dunungan (Pedantry), 1975; Kristal na Uniberso (Crystal Universe), 1989; and Trick of Mirrors, 1993.

Tinio's achievement in drama includes masterful translations into Tagalog of major works of the Western theater, starting with Laruang Kristal (Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie) and Pahimakas sa Isang Ahente (Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman), 1966; and Paghihintay Kay Godo (Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot) and August Strindberg's Miss Julie, 1967. The first two significantly influenced the return of Philippine theater to the vernacular.

He is remembered as an innovative and imaginative director. He first attracted attention with his experimental productions, such as Oedipus Rex, 1960; the Oresteia, 1962; Macbeth, 1963. Murder in the Cathedral, 1966; and the first revival of Precioso Palma 's Sarswela, Paglipas ng Dilim (After the Darkness), 1969, all with Ateneo student actors. Tinio went on to direct traditional and modem plays and operas like: Dularawan: Salakot na Ginto (Image Play: The Golden Salakot), 1969, which inaugurated the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP); The Merry Widow, 1969; The Onyx Wolf, which inaugurated the CCP Little Theater (now Tanghalang Aurelio V. Tolentino), 1971; Prinsipe Baldovino (Prince Baldwin), 1971; Ang Kiri (The Flirt), 1974; Bayan-bayanan (Little Country), 1975 and 1976.

4 comments:

Ven Clarence E. Tuvera said...

Teatro Pilipino's 1975 Launching Season featured the CCP Award Winning play Bayan-Bayanan by Bienvinido "Boy" Noriega Jr. It was originally a one-act play with several scenes, and was based on the memoires of Boy Noriega as a student in Europe. Ella Luansing played the role of the Nurse Tessie in this production.

The following year, the play was expanded into a three act play and a new role was written for Ella Luansing - the role of globe trotting model Connie Del Castillo.

Ven Clarence E. Tuvera said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ven Clarence E. Tuvera said...

More on Rolando Tinio, during the 1950s, Rolando Tinio became an apprentice of Severino Montano in his Arena Theater Philippines. It was during this time when he began to wonder why Filipino dramatists such as Montano preferred to write in English.

In 1968, Zeneida Amador and her team of artists opened Repertory Philippines. They hired Rolando Tinio to mount its very first production. It was a Filipino Translation of Miss Julie/Binibining Julie by August Strindberg, and featured Ella Luansing in the title role. The cost for the production's stage design amounted to Ph.300.00, which was a fortune at that time. That was the last time Rolando Tinio worked with Repertory Philippines.

Unknown said...

Were Tinio's translations ever published? I remember Romeo at Julieta and Paghihintay kay Godo, they were so beautifully translated.

(Isang dating Lucky - "Ipagpalagay na tulad ng ibinabadya ni Puncher at Wattmann na may personal na Diyos... quaquaquaqua...")