The Ani ng Dangal Awards of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) recently recognized a total of 71 artists and works from different fields of the arts—36 for cinema, 16 for dance, 10 for visual arts, seven for music, one for dramatic arts, and one for literary arts.
The Ani ng Dangal (Harvest of Honors) Award recognizes passionate artisans in their respective crafts who have earned international laurels and accolades during the past year.
Among those honored were dance students of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB). Neil John Casagan, Renzo Arboleda, and Olivia Bugayong, all members of the Saint Benilde Romançon Dance Company (SBRDC), for winning gold medals at the Hong Kong Challenge Cup Dance Competition 2016.
Casagan and Arboleda won for the Duo category in the Jazz/Contemporary division, while Bugayong triumphed in the Solo category in the Classical division.
The Hong Kong Challenge Cup promotes dance culture, and provides a platform for practice and experience exchange for amateurs and professionals. Dancers from all over Asia, including the Philippines, participated in this annual meet.
The recognition serves as the closing activity of the NCCA’s yearly celebration of the National Arts Month.