Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio, 90: Making kids laugh, learn

Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio —LYN RILLON

MANILA, Philippines — National Artist for Theater Amelia Lapeña-Bonifacio, who died on Dec. 29 at the age of 90, revived and revitalized children’s theater in the Philippines through Teatrong Mulat (“Enlightened Theater”), the dramatic troupe she started out of her home in 1977.

Drawing on traditional Asian puppet theater forms such as the Japanese bunraku and Indonesian wayang, “the Grand Dame of Southeast Asian Children’s Theater” created her own hybrid form of “total theater” that integrated music, dance and drama in the service of educating, enlightening and entertaining young Filipinos.

“A child loves to laugh—that’s why he or she watches,” Bonifacio once told writer Cora Llamas in an interview for Inquirer Lifestyle. “You should be able to make him or her laugh.”

But, she added, the play should also make them think.

“I like the stories where the weak and the small win,” she said. “Not through brute force, but through their wits and intelligence. Remember that my audience is made up of those who are weak and small.”

According to her, puppetry and children’s theater, when done correctly, could impart lifelong lessons to their audience. So strong was Bonifacio’s belief in the transformative power of children’s theater that, according to Llamas’ article, she once gave pointers to Jim Henson of “Sesame Street” and “The Muppet Show” fame, suggesting he refrain from showing comedic violence and food fights.

Born in Binondo in 1930, Bonifacio studied literature and drama at the University of the Philippines (UP). She continued her studies in theater in the United States on a Fulbright grant, and later immersed herself in the study of Japanese and Southeast Asian theater.

She then started Teatrong Mulat to serve as a vehicle for her vision of a Filipino theater for young audiences, writing dozens of plays for the puppet theater troupe. They included full-length musicals such as “Abadeha: Ang Ating Sinderela” (1977), “Papet Pasyon” (1985) and “Sita at Rama: Papet Ramayana” (2004).

A prolific writer, Bonifacio published 10 books, 16 plays, on top of 30 plays and more than 130 short stories for children.

Upon her retirement from teaching at UP Diliman in 1995, she was named Professor Emeritus in English and Comparative Literature. In 2018, she was named National Artist for Theater.Teatrong Mulat continues her work under the direction of her daughter, Amihan Bonifacio-Ramolete, and grandchildren.