Aliwan Fiesta will be back in the streets of Pasay and Manila on July 13-15.  This was announced by Manila Broadcasting Company (MBC) when it formally re-launched the mammoth cultural showcase dubbed the festival of champions.

Officially signing the memorandum of agreement with MBC President Ruperto Nicdao, Jr. were Pasay City Mayor Emi Calixto-Rubiano and Dennis Marasigan Vice President and Artistic Director of the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

Since its inception in 2003, Aliwan Fiesta has gathered participants from north to south of our festive islands, harnessing regional pride in a kaleidoscopic preview of their socio-cultural and economic profiles through music, dance, pageantry, and physical theater.

But due to circumstances brought about by the pandemic, the festival was put on hold, and Manila Broadcasting Company turned to its digital platforms to continue the excitement and the fervor. The online search for Aliwan Fiesta Digital Queen (AFDQ) brought forth lovely young ladies from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, who epitomized social responsibility and community leadership.

The virtual search, which carried an award for Pride of Place, also enabled young filmmakers relegated to working from home throughout the lockdown, in showcasing cultural traditions, eco-tourism, and one-town-one product campaigns of their respective regions.

At the press launch last week, MBC also unveiled the new Aliwan Fiesta logo, with its multi-colored hues and shapes, but using the Kagitingan font designed by Edsel Pingol, harkening to the valiant stand Filipinos took amid the pandemic years. Witnessing this were former Reynas ng Aliwan Jamie Herrell (2013) and Marla Alforque (2017) along with AFDQ winners Jannarie Zarzoso (2020) and Marikit Manaois (2022).

When Aliwan Fiesta takes to the streets once more, albeit on a smaller scale due to the road repairs along Roxas Boulevard, the nightly festivities and the grand parade will be contained within the CCP Complex.  Nevertheless, it is a highly awaited return and one that regional festivals all over the country have been gearing up for since the government started easing public restrictions.

After all, in epic proportions, Aliwan Fiesta is a microcosm of life in these 7641 islands.