MFFC Youth Performing Arts Group busy with 5 shows since June

MFFC Youth Performing Arts Group busy with 5 shows since June

By Victoria Torres

The Markham Federation of Filipino Canadians Youth Performing Arts Group has been quite busy this summer. While continuing rehearsal for their October show, A Taste of Broadway: Remastered at the Flato Markham Theatre, they have also been busy with promotional performances in and around the Greater Toronto Area such as Taste of Asia, Canada Day, and the Mississauga Philippine Festival.

On Saturday, June 25, 2017 the MFFC provided a taste of A Taste of Broadway at the annual Taste of Asia street festival. The afternoon set included previews of some segments including Fiddler on the Roof, Wicked, and Lion King, and a cultural tinikling performance. The audience not only got to witness the YPAG in action, but also met some of the main performers: Jason Nunez, Jasmine Ragual, and Candace Santos. Hail may have been enough to stop the performance – leaving the performers, band, and some parents stranded on stage – but did very little to stop the growing excitement for the October shows.

Skies were clearer on the 1st of July as Markham celebrated Canada’s 150th birthday at Milne Dam Park. Performing on the same stage as Francesco Yates and Panicland, the young entertainers presented Fiddler on the Roof, Lion King, and – for the first time this season – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Immediately after the performance, it was announced that Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti would be performing in the Taste of Broadway show!

The Mississauga Philippine Festival on Saturday, July 8th, brought the MFFC to Celebration Square, and outside its usual performance radius. Fiddler on the Roof, Lion King, and Joseph were among the segments previewed at this venue, but the youth and audience alike were also fortunate enough to witness a beautiful solo performance by main performer Candace Santos, a Mississauga native, singing Wicked’s “The Wizard and I”.

The Youth Performing Arts Group’s next performance was not until August 19th, when they entertained the audiences during the Macau Festival at the Markham Carousel (Enterprise Blvd & Birchmount Rd).
A Taste of Broadway: Remastered was staged for two nights at the Flato Markham Theatre, Oct. 7 and 8, 2017.