By Katie Callahan
The PASACAT Philippine Performing Arts Company will share both Filipino culture while sharing something more universal come Aug. 19 — laughter.
“When Filipinos gather, it’s all about the food, the music, the karaoke. It’s all about performing, and with the comedians, that’s just another extension because when you go to Filipino parties, the aunties and uncles are always telling stories and they’re always laughing,” said Ana Cabato, executive director of the PASACAT Performing Arts Company. “We’re storytellers.”
The FilAm Comedy Slam San Diego will feature headliner Edwin San Juan and multiple openers, including his wife Shaye San Juan, and locals Shain Brenden and Oliver Bascos, at its one night, two-show event at The Comedy Palace in Kearny Mesa. Comedian Randy Villarba will host the event.
Edwin said some of his jokes come from observation and things that happen in his life, like family dynamics, and becoming a father to his baby daughter.
“That transcends or goes across different nationalities, not just Filipino. The other parts of it are also that I am Filipino, and some people don’t know the difference between Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Filipino, so it’s kind of educational and informative as well,” said Edwin San Juan, who is also resident headliner at the Las Vegas Live Comedy Club. “People will see that we’re really the same more than we are different through family dynamics.”
Shaye San Juan is a comedian, but she is also a cosmetologist, professional makeup artist, creator of an artistic YouTube channel and a producer, writer and host of the podcast, “Ed Said Shaye Said.” She is also a San Diego native, excited to see family and friends and to show people that comedy transcends and to support charity.
“For one thing, with the show, it’s just the show itself, it goes to great cause, it’s going to a great charity and also just to kick back, relax and enjoy life, enjoy some humor,” Shaye said. “I mean, the world is a crazy place. If you watch the news, there’s a lot of things going on that we kind of want to escape from, so it’s good to just kick back and have some fun.”
The event will serve as a fundraiser for PASACAT, a nonprofit organization in National City that provides youth and young adults with Philippine dance and performing arts education and understanding. The company is well-known across the United States and in the Philippines for its Philippine dancing, according to Cabato.
PASACAT stands for Philippine American Society and Cultural Arts Troupe. The company will try to raise $32,000 to repair its building, namely flooring, woodwork, electrical paneling and an outdoor stage. Sarap Tikman, a tasting of Filipino fusion food, was the first fundraising event held by PASACAT in June.
This is the second year PASACAT has hosted a comedy show over the summer. Last year, the first of the two shows sold out at 200 people, with the second following closely behind. This also comes after the Balboa Bicentennial where they hosted three comedians.
“We’re primarily a cultural arts organization so going in this direction is just about presenting artists and we always want to give artists an opportunity to share their talent, to share their gifts with the community,” Cabato said. “Because they’re Filipino they have a very different perspective of their stories when they give their performance, so we hope that people will get glimpse of the culture through that and appreciate it as well.”
A 2015 report from Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Los Angeles that uses 2010 census data states that the Filipino population in San Diego County is the third largest concentration of Filipinos in the United States, but the largest Asian population in the county.
Oliver Bascos is a comedian who has been performing in San Diego since 2006 but moved from the Philippines in 1994. Bascos has opened up for comedians from Comedy Central, Def Comedy Jam and BET’s “ComicView,” among others. His goal every show is to make people laugh and help people forget about their problems, he said, and this show is also a nice way for some of the rising stars in the Filipino community to be discovered.
“It’s a great way for the community to get together and just honor the culture,” Bascos said.
Bascos brings his urban style into his jokes. He hopes this event can encourage young people away from trouble and into PASACAT, an escape he never had as a kid.
“I want to build a name here first, so that way people from the Philippines know who I am and I can inspire a kid over there,” Bascos said. “I’m not here for the money or the fame. I just want to inspire someone.”
Tickets for the two shows at 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. will sell for $22 through Aug. 14 and $25 at the door. More information can be found at the Arts Alive Events Facebook page or by calling 619-477-3383. The shows are open to all audiences.
PASACAT’s next event is the PASACAT Extravaganza, a 90-minute performance of Philippine dance theater, on Oct. 8.
— Katie Callahan is a San Diego-based freelance journalist who spends her free time on craft beer, hiking, books and local eats. Reach her at [email protected] or check out her latest at katieannecallahan.weebly.com.
