City to join Heritage Month celebration
Heritage artifacts and gowns of past Jaro fiesta queens will be featured during the National Heritage Month which starts Friday at Robinsons Place Iloilo.
The activity which is spearheaded by the Iloilo City Cultural Heritage and Conservation Council and the city government also invited Filipino Heritage Festival Inc. director Bambi Harper to grace the occasion.
The Jaro fiesta is one of the significant events in the city wherein only women coming from the moneyed and famous families have the opportunity to become the fiesta queen.
The fiesta queen and her entourage wore several gowns from the parade until the coronation night. The gowns were designed by famous designers and cost thousands of pesos. The young generation will have a glimpse on what the past fiesta queens have worn.
There will also be lectures at the La Isabelita in Jaro wherein Dr. Alice Magos of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas will talk about Panay epics. Stakeholders and participants will be enlightened on the importance of conservation of heritage houses or artifacts that reflects history.
In the city, there are a number of old houses and several affluent families who are fortunate to possess artifacts dated several decades ago. The old houses are mostly found in the districts of Jaro and Molo.
The University of San Agustin Little Theater and USA Choir Troubadors will also perform at the Jaro auditorium during the heritage dinner.