"The Sinulog Festival now Diyandi Festival" Top 5 Page for this destination Iligan City Things to Do Tip by glengyl_iligan

September 29 - Sinulog
The Sinulog is the most attended and popular of the fiesta highlights. Performed only in the afternoon of the feast day, this ritualistic street-dance drama (also called eskrima) mimics the celestial battle between Lucifer and San Miguel. It is an improvised dance on the street and anybody from the crowd is free to join in. The performers, upon vanquishing their imaginary foe, cry out, "Viva Señor San Miguel!" and the crowd roars back, "Viva!" This is repeated throughout the dance.

The Diyandi (ritual dance) is performed only during the feast of Iligan Patron Saint, Senior San Miguel (Feast Day: September 29). Other curious dance-forms, also performed during the San Miguel Fiesta, include the Eskrima (a dance simulating a fight between San Miguel and his enemies, and the Yawa-yawa, literally, devil-devil), a dance from depicting the celestial battle between the forces of good and evil as impersonated by St. Michael, the Archangel and Lucifer.

Sometime in 1986, it was somehow felt by the local fiesta committee that there was a need to further popularize the folk-dance forms of the Iliganon. Thus was an idea born: the concept of a street dancing festival that will not only preserve certain traditional art forms but promote them as well. In an age when culture and tradition are battered by the incursions of modernity, the significance of such undertaking as a completion of traditional art forms cannot be belittled.

Now called the KASADYA (street dancing and merrymaking), which showcases these rich and varied cultural traditions. Highlighted by the traditional Diyandi, Eskrima and the street drama. KASADYA that was started, as a local form of entertainment has become a major tourist attraction of Iligan drawing crowds to about 50,000 people both local and tourist alike. It is considered as a non-income generating project having the most number of spectators both in the streets and in the showdown venue proper as compared to other tourism related activities.

It is to be noted that the San Miguel Fiesta focused on KASADYA was acclaimed by the BBC Holidays (a monthly consumer magazine published in the United Kingdom and the only publication officially endorsed by the prestigious British Broadcasting Corporation) as a tourist destination. It cited the tribal pageantry mixed with Christian piety famous with brightly costumed participants miming a fight with unseen adversaries to cries of "Viva Senior San Miguel". Other participants, dressed as warrior angels, march solemnly. It added that it is very unique because of the miracle play called the Yawa-yawa, performed in vernacular dialogue and depicting Lucifer's unsuccessful revolt against God and the good angels. Other national and local publications also cited KASADYA as a tourist attraction in Iligan.

Address: Iligan Plaza
Directions: Poblacion, Iligan City
othercontact: www.iligan.gov.ph
Phone: (063)2214326
Website: http://www.iligan.us