WHENEVER there are foreign delegates coming to Davao City, they are warmly welcomed by representatives and a performance from the Kalumon Performing Ensemble.
For 14 years now, the group has made the cultural performances alive in Davao City during special occasions. It was in 2005 when Mario Leofer Lim, who was a choreographer then for the kids of Magallanes Elementary School indak-indak performance entries, decided to push through and spread the influence further to the children and interested cultural performers.
He trained around 10 to 15 youth to perform in the First World Music Festival during Kadayawan Festival. They were able to bag the Best Performance award and the grand prize.
"Mas nakita nako na maayo gyud sya sa mga bata. Among gipang-create na performance kay naa gyud meaning. Nagpadayon pud mi para sa mga performers because art is therapy pud," Lim said.
Since then, the Kalumon Performing Ensemble was born. From 2007 to 2010, Lim said they give annual free performance at People's Park for two days. According to Lim, it's their way of giving back to the people through the cultural performances they have honed through the years.
Now, aside from performance invites in Davao City during conventions, foreign delegate welcomes, mall and hotel events, they are also being invited to other countries together with City Government representatives.
In 2018, they were at Nanning, China for the International Garden Expo with the City Government. In two separate instances this year, they were at Seoul, South Korea, the first one for the Tourism and Investment Roadshow together with the Davao City Investment Promotions Center and the City Government. Second time, they were at Seoul was for the 10th anniversary of the Asean-Korean Center.
The cultural performance of Kalumon reminds every Dabawenyo of the rich treasure that our performing arts has. Likewise, its exposure to other countries also promotes the arts and culture of Davao City.
Catch them every Tuesday for their monthly performance at Matina Town Square (MTS). Today, August 20, they will have a special 14th anniversary performance at MTS, 7 p.m.