Pistahan has always been a local festival with over 80,000 people attending the parade and festival every year. Organized by the
Filipino American Arts Exposition (FAAE), Pistahan is where one can experience the best of Filipino art, dance, music, and food.
This year, the largest celebration of Filipinos in the U.S. has been reimagined as a digital festival with the theme
One Community: United in Hope and Healing.
The
2020 Pistahan Virtual Parade and Festival happens on
Saturday, August 8 until
Sunday, August 9 from
11:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. (Pacific) online at
www.pistahan.net and will stream live on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/pistahansf, on their YouTube channel at
www.youtube.com/pistahansf, and on Kumu.
FAAE President Al Perez shares that taking Pistahan to a virtual platform allows them to extend the celebration of Filipino community, culture, and cuisine to new communities across the globe.
Perez reveals that they have been able to
“create new collaborations and connect with new communities from all around the globe beyond just San Francisco.” This includes Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago in the U.S.; the Philippines; the Gulf in United Arab Emirates; and Australia. He says that
“the Pop-Up Food Court involves over 20 U.S. states, six countries, and over 70 Filipino businesses.”
The entertainment line-up includes Broadway star siblings
Adam and Arielle Jacobs, The
Little Manila Dance Collective,
Parangal Dance Company,
Kariktan Dance Company, singer and songwriter Jenn Clemena, singer and songwriter Hazel Faith, composer and guitarist Florante Aguilar, and more.
TFC continues to support Pistahan as it has done through the years. On Sunday, the back-to-back shows of
myx and
TFC will start at 3:00 P.M. kicking off with the TFC Show that highlights multi-awarded singer, lyricist and songwriter
Joey Albert and host, singer and Kumu live streamer
Yzabel Cabral. There will also be video greetings from celebrities who have graced the Pistahan stage in the past: Martin Nievera (2007 and 2018), Jason Gainza (2009), Erik Santos (2012), and Morissette (2015 and 2019)
The “Hella Fresh” myxTape is a tastemaker curated myx segment of millennial artists from Manila and the Bay Area whom you can hear in heavy rotation on our myxRADIO on Dash Radio station. The line-up includes all original music written/performed by international singer/songwriter
Inigo Pascual (Pistahan 2017 performer), R&B/neo-soul artist
Kiana V, rapper/scientist
Ruby Ibarra (Pistahan 2018 performer), musical artist
Gabe Bondoc with his daughter Savannah Bondoc, and island soul musical duo
CRSB.
ABS-CBN Global COO Olivia De Jesus is grateful for the partnership between Pistahan organizer
FAAE and
TFC. The relationship helps to
“remind ourselves that the Galing Filipino (greatness of the Filipino) continues to live and grow through good or bad, through thick or thin, through sunshine or storm.”
Celebrating Pistahan amid the pandemic is also lauded by
ABS-CBN Managing Director for North and Latin America Jun Del Rosario. He says that continuing this great Filipino American tradition means
“we believe in a future, we hope for a future, and we want to play a meaningful role in that future.”
Pistahan 2020 features an online parade, performances, cooking demos, tech talks, a film festival, a pop-up food court, a sari-sari marketplace, and many more. The two-day festival will also feature content from Pistahan’s eight pavilions (Art, Culinary, Dance, Health, Heritage, Innovation, Sports, Pistahan Tavern) showcasing the talents, skills, expertise, and history of Filipinos from across the globe.
Watch the
2020 Pistahan Virtual Parade and Festival on
Saturday, August 8 and on
Sunday, August 9 from
11:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. (Pacific) at
www.pistahan.net and on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/pistahansf, on their YouTube channel at
www.youtube.com/pistahansf, and on Kumu. Go to
www.pistahan.net for more information.